The Legend of Zelda: Chronicles of Darkness
by Berserker Link
Summary: An unspeakable evil descends upon the world. Now Link and his new band of warriors are the only ones that stand a chance of saving it. Will the Light triumph... or will Evil reign for eternity? Rated safely M for violence in early chapters.Suck at summary
1. Prologue

Hi, it's me with another story. Well it's been a while since I've posted a story and I'm not even done yet. I just want to thank all the people that gave their opinion in the reviews for my last story. Anyway, I have improved since my last story. This story contains strong and graphic violence that may not be suitable for kids and younger teens. Another thing, the characters in this story take an unreal amount of damage before falling to add emphasis to how hard the battles are.

I also have to give credit to a very skilled author pen named "The Dark Marauder" for the idea of the Forest of Lost Time. Also, all characters from Nintendo are **not **my property and I am in no way affiliated with them and am not trying to profit from this story. I just want to say that if anyone has any suggestions or comments feel free to review. Please review my story so I know how to improve my next one. I'll try my best to post a new chapter every week.

One last thing. There are a few minor references to my past story. You don't necessarily have to read it to understand, but I'd like it if you would. Please R&R if you are one of those kind enough to take the time to read my other crappy story. 0.o ;)

Alright I'm sure you're tired of hearing me talk, so on to the story.

Thanx,

Berserker Link

**Prologue **

(By the way, this prologue takes place over millions of years)

Ages ago, before the universe existed, there was a Supreme Being that wandered through the dimensions. He eventually ran across an infinite empty space. Not being one to enjoy being lonely, the being conjured all his power into his palm then released it. From the palm of his hand, the universe that was known was spun into the vast emptiness.

Over ages, the patient benevolent being watched his creation grow and become stable. Many worlds birthed creatures and life. The being then chose a few highly advanced beings from his favorite planets and brought them to his home in what he called the Sacred Realm. He blessed them with immortality and an aspect in creation in which to rule over. There were many different things: there were fire, water, earth, and wind gods, gods of peace and war, gods of emotion and knowledge, gods of love and greed.

The beings, named gods by Supreme Being, were sent out to rule the universe then the Being left the Sacred Realm to begin ruling the creation. While Supreme Being once again began wandering the realms of existence never to be seen again. Before he departed he forged a mask with which one could summon his powers back to the universe. Then he randomly cast it into the universe where it fell on a small planet that would eventually yield some of the most intelligent and greatest creatures in the universe.

There were some beings that didn't agree with the idea of having to submit to a god. On one world a race of creatures actually captured the God of Pride and being highly magical creatures they cast a spell that changed the god. His body became black as night and two huge dragon-like wings sprouted from its back. It's insides turned into a pit of fire and the flames leaked from his eye sockets. He roared in agony and his voice crackled like flames. Then the magical beings placed a heart of pure evil into the god's burning black body. He was known from then on as the God of Darkness.

Meanwhile the gods scattered throughout the universe and found worlds that they seemed to like. Three goddesses found a small planet in the center of the universe that they all loved, so they all decided to rule it. Their names were Din, Farore, and Nayru.

On that planet the three goddesses found six distinct species of intelligent beings. These were Hylians, Zora, Gerudo, Goron, Kokiri, and Man. They favored the Hylians and for many years they taught them the arts of magic. They also showed them how to build magnificent buildings and great cities. Then they left to the sacred realm.

Over hundreds more years the god of darkness gathered many races from many planets to submit to him and launched a full-scale war on the Sacred Realm. The God of War found out and forged a sword into which he poured his powers and magic. He led the heavenly races against the forces of darkness in a mighty battle that shook the heavens. During the battle, which by the way the good side won, the god of war's sword was cast to the same planet as Supreme Being's mask.

Together the two weapons could make any of the gods seem powerless. The goddesses knew this; they also knew that evil would eventually try to get its hands on them. So they, along with all the other good gods, planned to raise up a group of heroes who would eventually find the strength to overcome this threat. When the evil one, the God of Darkness found this out, he vowed to destroy this band of heroes and claim the weapons for himself.

When the goddesses found out about his treachery they agreed to use their power and create an object that would greatly weaken his power. This object was known as the Triforce. The three goddesses' powers, Power, Wisdom, and Courage, surrounded the evil one and trapped him in the Triforce. Then they cast the object into the Sacred Realm to hold the Triforce.

Over many millennia, the God of Darkness remained imprisoned, but then the evil god made people begin to seek the Triforce for its power to grant any wish. It was eventually found and about to be used so the goddesses immediately broke it into three parts. They gave two to some very noble people, the king and a warrior, and kept one in the Sacred Realm. When they did he was immediately set free, he escaped and then made a Triforce of his own. He poured most of his power into it leaving just enough to defend himself from the goddesses. The goddesses did the only thing they could. They scattered the Triforce throughout the world.

The god's spirit was free, but he needed a body for his spirit to inhabit so he wandered the Sacred Realm until a rip in this world was created by the most powerful mage in Hyrule, his name was Agahnim. The goddesses saw this and made plans to capture their brother again. He began to feel himself being sucked away and being only about a third free he was very weak so he possessed Agahnim and fled to a country called Pandera.

In a prosperous Eastern country known only as Hyrule the stage was set for a cataclysmic group of events millions of years in the making. Almost a thousand years earlier than this tale starts one of the two most powerful weapons in creation made its way from Hyrule to a country called Pandera. It was hidden in a place that no man has ever been able to get to due to one of the most powerful heavenly guardians. Meanwhile, Hyrule's greatest hero was born. He had already saved Hyrule and Termina from certain destruction and was one of the best warriors in the world. His name was Link.

In a country completely around the world another struggle was taking place. For the backward country of Pandera civil war was a common thing, but the one it finds itself in now is the worst in a millennium. It has lasted almost a half a century. The good king Gordon was the best king his country had ever seen, even in the midst of turmoil he kept those loyal to him quite pleased. He was just and fair, he enforced his laws strictly, but justly. His prosperous part of the country was wealthy and the people healthy. The finest forest in the country surrounded the royal city of Pandera. The king's magnificent castle was surrounded by a moat and it towered above every other building.

Agahnim made his long journey to Pandera and immediately used his evil powers to get the king to trust him and appointed him to a high position on his royal cabinet. Soon he was second only to Gordon himself. He secretly started an army of rebels and the nameless warrior, who himself possessed one of the great god's weapons. He knew that Gordon would underestimate Agahnim's small army, but he would be mistaken. After that it was just a matter of waiting for the right opportunity. Eventually many of the enemies allied themselves to Agahnim. The army grew to incredible size.

Then one day it happened, Agahnim put his plan to work. One of Gordon's scouts reported seeing an army that stretched further than the eye could see. When he reported to the king he knew it had to be Agahnim. So he prepared his army and every man or youth that was strong enough to wield a sword. The evil army took the city by storm and captured the castle. The hidden warrior used a devastating weapon that brought the entire army to its knees in only a couple of hours. Gordon was taken to Aghanim's fortress and was tortured. Aghanim tried to get him to renounce his throne and live, but when he wouldn't he was killed. Then Aghanim used his massive army to make the people pronounce him king. The evil side only needed one last boost of strength and it would rule the country. They needed to bring down Poft.

There were a few who still remained loyal to Gordon though. The leader of these rebels was the king's royal combat trainer, Fong. He slowly gathered some other skilled warriors that weren't killed in the attack. Then, they took some orphans and children that showed some potential skills with the way of the warrior. Over the next twenty years, the academy became well known among the rebels. Many children volunteered to join the academy. Little did anyone know that one of the Destined Heroes would come out of the academy.


	2. A Warrior Emerges

**Chapter I**

**A Warrior Emerges**

One beautiful, crisp, fall day at the training academy the top student, Jonah, was meditating. He was sitting cross-legged on a large pillow on the floor. The academy was very much influenced by the oriental styles. So it was custom to sit on a pillow instead of a chair. Jonah was the first orphan taken up by Fong when he was 12. He was now 20 and a little over six feet tall, for he was a human, not an elf. He didn't have much muscle tone, but he was quite strong. He had light skin and wavy brown hair about three inches long that let fall over his ears. He always wore a blue shirt and white training pants that were covered below his knees by thick leather boots. He also wore a red cape. He was the only student with a golden sash, which he wrapped around his forehead and let fall to his back. He was quite reserved and only talked when necessary.

His eyes were closed and his thoughts were turned to one dreadful night, almost eight years ago, when his parents were killed before his own eyes. He was only 8 and was just on his way home from playing with his best friend when he saw many soldiers rush past him in the direction of his house. Him and his friend had grown up in a town where there was a fierce rivalry between Agahnim and the Rebels. Not a day went by where there wasn't a fight or a murder. The two knew well enough that they should hide. His friend hid behind some crates in the alley, while Jonah dove into a barrel. Soon after the guards passed he peeked his head out of a barrel he'd hid in. He began to get scared and ran as fast as he could to his house. He peered in through the window, just in time to see it. Three soldiers dressed in black had broken into the house. Jonah saw his father lying motionless on the floor on a puddle of his own blood. His mother was screaming as the soldiers slowly backed her into a corner. Jonah couldn't take it and he turned away in time to hear a scream followed by a thud and then nothing.

His eyes shot open; his face wet with sweat as the memories plagued his thoughts. Just then the door slid open behind him and his instructor came in and told him that some of the newer trainees were starting trouble. Jonah got up, trying to hide his anger and sadness, and casually followed his instructor past many oriental style buildings to the top of a small grassy embankment over where the scene was taking place. To his left some students were sparring with blunt blades, and to his right some were learning how to fight with long rods. There was a group of kids on the ground getting beat up by a gang of troublemakers.

"Hey, guys! It's Jonah! Let's get out of here!" shouted Ben, who seemed to have started the whole thing. Ben was a skinny blond kid who wore a red shirt and black pants, he was a black sash student. With one smooth motion Jonah pulled his training rod from the place it was strapped onto his back and threw it between Ben's legs as he was running, sending him crashing to the ground. There was a loud crack as the boy's arm was crushed under his own weight. All the other students in his gang helped him up and then they all scattered. Then, without a word, Jonah left back to his meditation.

Later that evening, Jonah came to the dining hall. It was a dimly lit and loud room. It was confusing because everyone was talking at the same time. On a table near the entrance Ben sat, staring at Jonah with pure anger all night. His arm was now held up with a cast. Jonah, who had taken a spot at a table across from him, looked at him and started to feel sorry for him. He was about to get up and go over to him when Jonah's friend, Steven, came in. He was a brown skinned extremely muscular guy who wore a flashy silver shirt and black pants. He was 24 and was the oldest student in the academy. He always had a shaved head and on his neck was a chain that held up a large gold pendant. He was a silver sash student. He was also one of those people who were constantly talking.

"Hey, Jonah. I heard what happened earlier. You really took care of that mess well. So where is the troublemaker?" he asked rudely.

"He's sitting right across the table." Jonah said, nodding his head toward the angry teen glaring at him.

"Hey Ben, Master Fong needs to see you. He didn't seem happy either." Steven said smugly. Sad and afraid, Ben left the room. Everyone knew that Master Fong would severely punish those that broke the peace and discipline of the academy. Fong was an old oriental with a skinny white beard that started at his chin. He wore a light brown robe with sleeves that just about touched the floor. From a distance Jonah followed Ben to the room where Master Fong was. As he got closer, he could hear master Fong yelling at Ben. Then Jonah saw Fong pull out his rod to punish Ben. He knew that Fong would strike Ben's broken arm until the pain was unbearable.

"Stop! Don't do it!" yelled Jonah as he ran into the room.

"Jonah… Why do you ask me to stop? You're the one who caught him!" questioned Fong.

"I know, but he doesn't deserve this punishment. How about a week of double duties?" Jonah suggested trying to ease the boy's punishment to just more training.

"Very well… but you shall be the one to enforce this. If he starts something else, he'll be expelled!" explained Fong angrily. Then he stormed out of the room into his private chambers.

"Yes master," Jonah said as he quickly bowed and left the room with Ben following close behind. There was an awkward silence as they walked back to the dining hall. Ben knew that Jonah deserved a thank you, but he was still angry about what Jonah had done earlier. Jonah could tell, and didn't bother to try to be friendly to Ben.

Over the next week Jonah became quite close to Ben. He served as Ben's personal instructor, and after a few awkward days they became friends. Though the training was hard for Ben, because of his broken arm, he would always find a way to finish. The determination shocked Jonah. Not even he had that much dedication at Ben's age. Soon the training was over and Jonah returned to his own training, so he didn't get to talk to Ben that much anymore.

For a couple of weeks nothing new happened until word reached the academy that the evil Agahnim was planning to destroy Poft, one of the only major cities that were still loyal to the old emperor. So master Fong ordered his most experienced students and instructors to lead the army into battle. Their mission was to intercept Agahnim's army and either keep them away all together or at least dwindle down their numbers so that Poft could handle them better. Master Fong had chosen Jonah to lead the campaign, and after much reluctance Jonah finally accepted the task. Before leaving, Jonah selected two people to head up the mission with him. He selected Steven and another highly disciplined student named Terry.

Terry was a student that no one really knew. Nothing was known about where he came from, he just kind of showed up one day. He immediately began training and excelled in the art of combat as if he was an experienced warrior. He even excelled some of the most experienced teachers in the Academy. He was a natural fighter as well as a training magician. He had white hair that he put into a ponytail and wore a white shirt with white pants; his silver sash really complemented the white suit. There was just something about him, something mysterious and secret, but at the same time, a feeling that you could trust him.

The army that Jonah led was about 50,000 people from the surrounding towns and cities, as well as the black and silver sash students from the Academy. The army was relatively large, but when they heard that Agahnim had unleashed an army of over 120,000 warriors, they felt very insignificant. One night, as Jonah was in his tent, he was feeling very worried about the battle that was going to happen in less than a week. He was wondering so many things and was beginning to doubt his ability as a leader. Then, suddenly, Steven walked in.

"Hey, man. I need to talk to you," he said. "A lot of guys are worried about the battle, but we all trust you and know your judgments will be wise. We are all willing to follow you, even to our deaths. You know that right?"

"Yah, I'm just worried that I'll mess up." Jonah said. "I mean I'm still only a student. Do you really think I can command the whole Rebel army?"

"Don't give me that! Why do you think you're the only one with a gold sash? I'll tell you, because you are the only one wise enough to lead the rest of us! We know that and we all trust you. Master Fong sees something special in you and he knows you can get us through this." Steven said, getting angry at Jonah's fear. He understood the stress, but seeing him like this made him feel uneasy.

"Thanks, man. You're right. I'm going to lead us to victory." Jonah said with a little courage restored. After a night, the army set out to try to intercept the evil army.

A few restless days later both armies met at the infamous Valley of the Ancients. This place was very rocky and had a lot of small ravines and cliffs. There was only one area that was relatively flat. It was also very arid and hot. The opposing army was all clad in thick black and gold armor and almost half rode on horseback. There were even some giants whose enormous bodies towered over the rest of the army. Jonah's army was more lightly armored and their special forces were a bunch of teenagers with bright sashes. The only horses his army had were the ones that carried supplies for the army and the three that Jonah, Steven, and Terry rode on. The armies agreed that they would begin the battle in the morning. So, in a very sleepless night until the battle, Jonah was fine-tuning his battle strategies.

Early in the morning Jonah's army had set out to surround the enemy's camp on three sides. Jonah, Terry, and Steven leading each division of soldiers. The soldiers were told to put some kind of cloth in between the plates in their armor so that they could move without being detected. Once they were in position and out of sight, they waited until Agahnim's army was all up.

Just as the first rays of sun shone over the horizon a horn blew from Agahnim's army and the forces of men and giants began to assemble. Within thirty minutes the whole army was already in their ranks. One man came down the ranks inspecting each one. He was not a giant, but he was very tall. He was very muscular and had a thinner layer of armor than the rest of the army that covered his dark skin. He had a cruel face and deep, dark brown, almost red, soulless eyes. He had two huge swords strapped to his back. He barked out orders and shouted commands. His name was General Cynan.

What he didn't notice was that Jonah's army was already on the move and was trying to surround the enemy's clustered camp. Then without warning Jonah's army charged. The General was caught off guard and this gave Jonah a little advantage. Jonah's army poured over the shallow wall of the valley that General Cynan was situated in. The two armies clashed head to head with a thunderous roar. The surprise attack did work for a while, but soon the soldiers regained their composure and began to fight back. They struck with all their strength, but Jonah's army found it difficult to gain any ground because of the soldiers' thick armor. For hours the battle raged with Jonah's army fighting valiantly, but they were slowly being driven apart. The thick armor was not allowing many of the warriors to successfully take down their enemies.

Then the tides turned and some 5,500 archers and crossbowmen that Jonah had positioned in the ravines and on the cliffs began firing on General Cynan's army. Jonah told them to wait until the enemy got confident and then start their assault. The strategy worked and the enemy army was beginning to scatter. Without such a close cluster Jonah's army easily began to take the advantage. The battle raged on for almost three days with almost no sleep every night. When both the armies were utterly exhausted, and seeing that neither was close to defeat, they decided that the easiest way to settle the battle was to send out their three best warriors to face each other. Whichever army the last man standing belonged to was the victorious army. So General Cynan's army sent out three giants, while Jonah picked Jose, Terry, and himself. At dawn the six met in the deepest, flattest part of the valley.

When the giants saw Jonah leading Steven and Terry they began to insult them. Each giant was at least 9 feet tall and had muscles bulging from everywhere, they each had a sword about five feet long. They didn't wear much armor, but it didn't look like they needed it. The three young warriors just walked calmly to meet their towering foes. Jonah suddenly began the assault; with a savage battle cry he rushed at the tallest giant with lightning speed. He held his sword strait sideways as he ran to the awaiting giant.

"Time to cut you down to size." he said as he sliced the giant's waist.

"AHHH! You'll pay!" bellowed the enraged giant as he clenched his stomach. The giant swung his gigantic sword, but Jonah actually jumped over the sword and sliced the giant's chest, making yet another large bloody gash. When he looked over he saw that Terry was handling his giant well, but then he turned to Jose. He had picked up a shield from the one of the people from previous battles and was blocking the giant's monstrous blows. Just as he was about to look away he saw Steven's shield splinter.

Just then the giant Jonah was fighting threw actually picked him up and slammed him into the ground. Jonah felt an intense surge of pain in his right arm when he tried to pick himself up. His giant had come into possession of a large club and was about to squash Jonah. As the club came crashing down Jonah put his sword right in the way and it actually split the club in two pieces. The impact sent an unimaginable shock down his arm, Jonah screamed and writhed in agony, but after a minute managed to get past the pain. His giant taking great enjoyment in watching his opponent suffer at his hands.

As he pulled himself back to his feet Terry tumbled to the ground next to him. The ruthless giant had thrown him across the battlefield. Now it came rampaging towards him, his face was bleeding and his right arm was nowhere to be seen. Just in time Jonah picked up a spear and threw it. The spear struck the giant in the chest and he collapsed to the ground. Then Jonah's giant came crashing down with blow after blow with his mighty sword. Jonah dodged them all except the last one, which caught his left arm. Jonah watched as warm blood began to flow from the wound.

"RRR! Is that all you got?" Jonah teased as he smiled cruelly. He sliced the giant's face and then grabbed the giant's shoulder and catapulted over his head. Then from the back he stabbed the giant's shoulder causing the giant to turn into Jonah's awaiting sword. With one swift move of his sword Jonah watched his beheaded foe fall down before him. Then Terry revived and both him and Jonah looked over to Steven. Just as they looked they saw the giant plunge his sword through Steven's stomach. Jonah stood there motionless as his best friend breathed his last. His brain wanted to rush over to his friend's bloody body, but his body was frozen in shock.

An uncontrollable rage quickly welled up in Jonah. "No!" Jonah shouted at the top of his lungs. "I'm going to make you pay!" He shouted at the giant. He ran to his foe with such an incredible speed that the giant didn't have time to attack as he felt Jonah's sword skewer his body. Then Jonah pulled out his sword and as he spun he swung his blade in an arc, which cleaved the giants head from his shoulders. Jonah relaxed and stood there facing away from the scene that had just taken place as he took in the shock.

Jonah slowly turned to his best friend. "Hey… thanks…" Steven said, followed by an attack of weak coughs. "I'm glad… I got to… meet someone like you…. I'll never forget you… even when I enter heaven. See you ther……" He said as his soul slipped away fro his body for eternity.

"NO!" Jonah shouted as tears poured out of his eyes, finding themselves flowing down his cheek onto Stevens body. "You can't be dead, not you too" Then he looked up at the sky and shouted, "Why'd you have to take everyone I cared about!" As if to scream at Agahnim and the goddesses. His heart had been dealt two eternal injuries that he doubted would ever heal.

Terry put his had on Jonah's shoulder to comfort him. "We should get back to the camp" He said quietly. After a few minutes of silence they headed back. When they did get back to the army everybody praised them and threw a celebration just for them that would most likely go on well into the night. Jonah, however, went strait to his tent and sat there. He thought of the three people he knew best taken away because of a sorcerer who betrayed their king. He eventually drifted into sleep without even noticing it.

Then in the middle of the night General Cynan and two silent assassins snuck into the camp and after killing the guards crept into Jonah's tent. He drew a small dagger and put it to Jonah's throat.

"Hey hero, wake up." General Cynan whispered in a cruel, disgusted voice. Jonah slowly woke, but froze when he felt the blade at his throat. His eyes shot open and he saw General Cynan glaring down at him with those unforgettable and unforgiving eyes. He had a scar that ran from the right side of his forehead to the bottom of his left cheek.

"Now hero, look at my face because you will be seeing it again, I promise you." General Cynan warned. After that him and his men stormed out of the tent. The next morning the army found that General Cynan's army was nowhere to be seen.

"HOORAAYY!" all the men shouted in victory. Then later that day they took a head count and discovered that 15,000 people had been killed. Then when they went to the battlefield they saw that more than 80,000 of General Cynan's men had been defeated. They had killed five times more men than General Cynan had. This was still a very heavy loss though.

In a couple of days the army had returned to their homes and the students returned to the academy, or so they thought. As they walked over the ridge that lead to the academy they saw it. The academy was nothing but a couple of beams that used to be walls and some smoldering boards.

_No! This must have been General Cynan. _Jonah thought as they walked towards the devastation. Jonah was checking for any sign of life when he heard some rustling under a pile of rubble. He ran and began to try to dig through the pile. He managed to find someone's arm and carefully pulled him free. It was Master Triton, one of the academy trainers.

"He… came and… we didn't stand… a chance," he said as he coughed weakly.

"Who came sir?" Jonah asked.

"I don't know… but he came… from the sky and attacked us… he called himself Tha aannhh…" he said as he breathed his last.

"Well Agahnim must be behind this." Jonah thought. Over the next couple of days Jonah went to Poft with the rest of the students and all slept at the inn until they chose what to do with their lives. When he arrived in Poft Jonah asked many of the townspeople if the army had come by, but none of them saw anything. This made Jonah worried. "What could destroy our academy if it wasn't an army?" he thought.


	3. Enemy of the Enemy

**Chapter II**

**Enemy of the Enemy**

"We must retrieve that relic before he finds it!" Agahnim shouted as he slammed his fists on the table.

"Don't worry I will find it first, but the information you received was wrong. The relic was not at that academy." Said a figure that was cloaked in a long black cloak, with a hood that covered his eyes and nose. All that could be seen was a evilly calm and crooked smile and a long pointed lock of almost platinum colored hair hanging lower than his face. He was leaned back in a chair with his feet on the table twiddling a small knife in his fingers.

"I know, but the people there would've gotten in our way. I just got them out of the way." Agahnim explained.

"I don't appreciate being used like that. If it happens again I will find the relic myself!" The figure said as he stormed through the door into the Great Hall.

"Wait, I promise it won't happen again!" Agahnim begged as he chased the figure.

"Fine, but I don't know where to find him. He came through the portal after me, but he disappeared before I could find him. So it may take a while." The figure said as he exited the castle.

"**_If I find that relic I can finally get out of this wretched weak body. Then I will return to Hyrule and use the almighty weapon to get the Dark Triforce and regain my full power." _**Daagog, god of Darkness, thought to himself from deep within Agahnim.

The figure knew that once his enemy found out that Agahnim was behind this he would journey to Fynn. So the figure commanded General Cynan keep 200 troops and to wait for his foe at Poft.

Meanwhile, a young warrior crashed into a thick shrub as a portal closed behind him. He was clad in a grass green tunic with a cap of the same color that folded over his head. He wore light green pants as well, and had thick leather boots that were lined with a thin rim of metal. He was pretty muscular and looked around 24 years old. It was hard to tell though, because he had the face of someone much wiser. He had golden blond hair and crystal blue eyes. He was kind, but at first glance seemed very battle hardened and scarred.

"Ow! I've definitely got to work on my landings." he said to himself as he brushed the dead leaves off his tunic. "So this is Pandera, I guess it's a pretty nice country." He stretched and took a deep breath of the crisp mountain air. This place wasn't hot and humid like Hyrule Castle Town. He wandered around for a while, and found a stream. He knew enough about the outdoors to know that the stream would lead to the bottom of the mountain and hopefully a town. He followed the stream to the base of that mountain and in the distance could see the outline of a small village. So Link made his way to the small town. The sun had begun its descent behind the horizon by the time he entered the town. As he walked through the dusty streets of the old western looking town he noticed that every person he passed gave him dirty and sometimes even threatening looks. He had no idea how much the people there hated elves. Pandera and Hyrule have been through a number of power struggles during history. Each time Hyrule would come out the more powerful and prosperous country. This alone made the humans that lived in Pandera resent the elves.

"Well I guess people don't like Hylians that much around here." He said as annoyance began to settle on him. He didn't like being praised to the point of divinity, like in Hyrule. But he didn't like being treated like dirt either. He continued to wander around until he came to the town's pub. _I am a little hungry. _He thought as he walked through the smoky doorway. He walked to the bar in the back, past tables full of drunken men that looked at him hatefully. When he got to the counter a big guy turned around and looked at him up and down for a second.

"Ey no stinkin' Hylians allowed in here! Now beat it!" he ordered as he spit on Link's boots. Two more big guys approached him in case he wouldn't go on his own.

"All I want is a meal, no trouble." Link said.

"Hear dat boys the little fairy boy no want trouble! Well I give trouble, big trouble!" mocked one of the guys who apparently hadn't made it through grade school. All the people in the smelly room laughed. That made Link mad, he turned around and unsheathed his Master Sword. When the other guys saw this they surrounded him and took out some chains and clubs.

Link eyed them all, waiting for one of them to charge. One guy got brave enough and began the assault by swinging a rather large club at Link. He easily dodged the clumsy club and did a horizontal slash across his hand, easily disarming the first guy. Then a guy with a chain came up from behind and swung the chain as hard as he could. Link foresaw this and dropped to the floor under the chain. The chain kept going and hit the guy that Link just slashed and the guy collapsed with a huge welt on the side of his head.

"Who wants more?" Link questioned as he motioned for them to attack. The owner of the bar surprised Link with a blow to the back with one of the stools. He was knocked down to the floor. "I hate backstabbers!" he said angrily as he glared an angry look at the guy. If there was one thing that set Link off it was people taking cheap shots. He believed that being a great fighter can only come through honorable battles. In an instant he was up and the other guy was down with a small wound in his right shoulder. That was just enough to get his point across. He also believed that killing a human should be reserved for a time when it is absolutely the last resort. The second guy just turned and ran out of the bar.

"Now if you would kindly take my order." He said to the owner.

"R…Right away sir." he said terrified. So Link quickly and distastefully ate his meal and decided that he'd rest for the night. He didn't want to fight again so he didn't even wander near the inn. Instead, he headed for the stables. He found an empty one and piled up the hay into a bed. He had learned that it was better than sleeping on the dirt.

He was woken up early by the sound of a wagon rolling by the road and the old peddler humming his song. Link got up and headed back to the town. He didn't even bother entering any of the buildings and just passed through the old town. He found a road that would take him to the capitol city Fynn. He didn't know where else the guy he was following would go, but he figured the capitol city was a good place to start.

He walked along the road passing a town every once in a while. All of them treated him with the same disrespect that they did back in the first one. After a couple of days of walking he found himself at the gates of a huge city called Poft. The people there were all blended culturally, there were Zoras, Goron, Gerudo dancers and Link even saw a group of Hylians that dared venture to this hostile country. There were also many races of men traveling around the bustling city. This made it a little friendlier than the previous towns. After an exhausting day he stopped at an inn. This inn actually gave him a room with no trouble. As he walked through the eating area he noticed someone. He was sitting in a corner table all alone and he looked very frustrated and sad. So Link, being kindhearted in nature, went to see if he could help. As he walked closer he heard the man repeating something to himself.

"What could have done it, what could have done it…" Jonah kept repeating to himself.

"Why do you look so down, maybe I can help." Link said cautiously.

"Huh, who's that." Jonah said as he was snapped back to reality. He turned to see a friendly looking stranger holding out his hand.

"Hey, my name's Link" he introduced.

"I'm Jonah. Thanks for offering but I seriously doubt you could help." Jonah said.

"Why, what's wrong. I've been known as a great hero in my country helping two entire countries from destruction. I'm sure I can help." Link offered kindly, trying to be friendly but at the same time not to gloat. So Jonah explained what happened a few weeks back. He told Link of the supposedly single being that completely destroyed his academy.

"What could do something like that except a god?" Jonah complained.

"Well it sounds a lot like the guy I was chasing before I lost him in the portal." Link said curiously.

"It's all Agahnim's fault! He's the one to blame!" Jonah couldn't help but shout out, making many people look at the table curiously.

"Did you say Agahnim? That's weird; he fled Hyrule when I defeated him as a boy. So what's he doing here? He ruined Hyrule when he ruled there." Link said partly to himself and partly to Jonah.

"Hey, we both want Agahnim, so maybe I could use your help." Jonah said. "We need to make our way to Fynn in the morning then." It seemed like a little hope was restored.

The two then parted for the night and got some rest. Little did they know that not only the country, but the entire world was in grave danger and that they were the ones who would strive to save it. They woke up early and found a table to talk. After they ate breakfast and discussed a quick plan of what to do the two left Poft and journeyed to Fynn. To get there they had to go through the Forest of Lost Time, or cross a large mountain range which was followed by the Valley of the Ancients, where Jonah battled the enemy's horde. Most people traveling there would use the mountain route, but it would take at least three times as long.

What they didn't know was that General Cynan and his army had been waiting for Jonah to be alone and then take him out. They had already caught the rest of the students when they left Poft two weeks earlier. They were all being held prisoner in Agahnim's palace.


	4. Into the Darkness

**Chapter III**

**Into the Darkness**

The duo traveled for about three days before they saw a row of rising trees ahead of them. They ran up to the entrance and noticed that the smallest tree was at least 300 feet high and 25 feet across. There was a thick wall of trees with an opening to the forest. Link figured it must have taken hundreds, if not thousands, of years for this forest to grow.

"There's a legend that no one has ever escaped from the forest once they enter. They say that time flows differently in these woods." Jonah told Link.

"You know how many times I've heard something like that. I've faced more 'inescapable' dungeons than I can remember." Link said proudly and a little haughty.

So they both headed into the dark forest. As they walked through the entrance they stepped into a natural phenomenon that would actually make time pass much slower for them than the rest of the outside world. Link and Jonah looked up in awe at the magnificent trees that must have taken hundreds of years to grow. The trees were so tall that the sunlight didn't come through at all. The only light came from some mushrooms that glowed a very dim bluish light, but it was hardly enough to see anything. Maybe one could see three feet in front of himself before the darkness was too thick to see. Link tried to light up a branch to use as a torch, but it just wouldn't stay lit. The canopy made it so that much of the moisture never evaporated, making all the vegetation very green and fresh. It also created a greenhouse effect that trapped in the humidity, making this a very humid musty place.

So the duo had to rely on the dim light of the luminous mushrooms for light. They searched for any sign of a trail or path made by people who dared make the dangerous trek. They eventually found a small path that seemed to lead away from the entrance. They began to follow it hoping it would somehow lead to the other side.

After what seemed like a few hours later Jonah began to get hungry. "Hey, I'm getting hungry, can we stop to eat." Jonah complained.

"Yeah why not, we've been walking all day." Link figured it had been at least a day since they entered the forest. So they stopped to eat. They ate only a small portion cause the food had to last for a while. After they finished eating they continued on a little path.

General Cynan was no fool; he knew the legends were true, time did slow down in the forest. So he told 120 of his rookie men to go in after Jonah and his Hylian companion. The rookies had no idea what to expect so they followed his orders without question. When they had gone General Cynan took the rest of his men and went around the long way; a 150-mile hike over the mountains and the desert beyond.

"Sir, won't that take a long time? Too long to hope to catch those two?" questioned one of his men.

"Trust me, we've got enough time." General Cynan said mysteriously. The man didn't know what he was talking about but he decided it was better not to argue.

About four days into the forest Link and Jonah were getting tired of the darkness. There was only one time where the sun actually broke through the gloom. They found this place to be much more uncomfortable for another reason as well. They found a few human skeletons along the way. Some apparently died from starvation, but others seemed rubbed clean. Some even had some deep grooves and scratches embedded in them. So they were forced to keep their guard up despite the fact that they couldn't see but ten feet around them.

During this time the two got to know each other a little better. Jonah told Link about his life at the academy and how his parents were both killed in the onslaught of Agahnim's huge army. He also told Link about his first battle against Agahnim's forces, where his best friend died. Link felt for him. Jonah had grown up an orphan like himself. Then he was thrust into a life of battle and war, maybe against his will, also like himself. Then Link told of his first adventure through Hyrule and then about Termania. He told Jonah about his last adventure that took him all over the world. He also told Jonah that he was also an orphan and forced to be a warrior at a young age. He told Jonah how he married a woman named Zelda and that he would became the next king of Hyrule. Jonah was shocked that Link was the heir to the throne of Hyrule.

"You should meet my wife, it's a good thing she's good at the whole royalty thing." Link joked. He got kind of teary when he mentioned his kids. They were twins. He had a son named Aaron and his twin sister named Lisa.

"Well sounds like you got yourself a nice family. I wish I would meet someone to settle down with. Maybe when this is all over with." he said as he trudged along the barely visible path.

"Man! I can't believe we haven't got to the end of this forest! We've traveled at least 20 miles every day!" Link yelled as he took out his anger by chopping up a tree trunk with his sword. Little did he know that since they first entered the forest that something in the shadows had its eye on the two, waiting for the right moment to strike. Link cutting that tree made the creature mad, but it still wasn't the right time to strike.

Days later as the two were about to go insane from the gloom Link and Jonah came to a big clearing where the sun actually came out. There was about three hundred feet without a single tree. The leaves were golden, indicating that in Pandera it was towards the end of the fall. Link gazed at the sky up above for the first time in a week and let a small smile climb up his cheeks. Just as he was starting to relax he heard Jonah.

"Oh no, this is Dead End Point," Jonah realized as his voice shook with nervousness. "This is where our trail ends and we are left to guess the rest of the way. This is the farthest anyone's ever been into the forest. No one knows what's still out there."

"Well that's good news." Link said sarcastically, "We're almost out of food!" Just as he finished talking a barrage thick vines shot out of the ground and flew towards the two. Link and Jonah unsheathed their swords and started hacking away at the vines. They were thorny and white liquid oozed from the tip. When the tough vines were cut the liquid was sprayed out and a very foul odor was released. One vine managed to find its way past Links sword and attach itself to Link's leg. He didn't think anything of it until he suddenly fell face first on the forest floor. As Jonah watched Link fall a vine grazed his arm and he too fell unconscious.

Jonah woke up some time later and found himself dangling from a tree by the vines that attacked them. He had no idea how long he had been hanging there; it was morning meaning they had been there at least over night. He looked over and saw that Link was near by, but he was still out cold due to the significantly greater amount of poison in his system. Suddenly two creatures walked into the clearing. One was very tall and looked a little like a tree itself. Its yellow eyes glared at Jonah, who pretended to still be asleep. It growled at the second creature in a low bellowing roar. The other creature was very short and skinny; it had a wide football shaped mouth full of jagged teeth and its blue eyes looked intently at the other creature. It had arms that were almost like a twig from shoulder to elbow and as wide as a small tree trunk from elbow to hand.

Link suddenly started struggling to break free as the effects of the poison finally began to wear off. Then he noticed that the creatures were walking towards him. The small one spit up some green acid and spit it at Link. It hit him in the shoulder and it burned so bad, but it burned the vines enough for Link to break himself out. He landed and jumped up to where Jonah was and cut him free too.

They both landed and charged towards the creatures. Jonah figured Link had a little more experience so he took on the smaller creature. He charged at the creature and tried a downward slash. The creature rolled out of the way and charged at Jonah. It used its thick arm to deliver a punishing blow to Jonah's head. He fell forward, but got back up. He touched the back of his head and felt a stream of blood flowing from a big gash.

"That hurt! You're gonna get it now!" Jonah shouted. He ran towards the creature and started swinging wildly. The creature used some power to raise up a wall of vines as a shield. Jonah regrouped and then did something that the creature didn't expect. He ran up and rolled towards the creature, then as he was getting up he swung his sword horizontally. The blade sliced the creature across the gut and some green acid started spilling out of the wound. The creature stood stunned as Jonah made his final move that flowed from the previous one. Jonah jumped and came in close to the creature. Then he thrust his sword into the creature. With a howl of pain the creature felt the blade go right through it. Jonah then pulled the sword up as hard as he could, effectively slicing the creature in half. The creature crumbled to the ground as the pool of acid began to eat away at it.

Then he looked over at Link, he was doing something that Jonah had never seen before. He was actually channeling the energy from inside him into his sword. As he did this, the sword began to glow a little. Then he unleashed his famous spin attack. The big creature didn't know what to expect. The sword actually chopped many chunks of wood off of the big creature. Link landed, expecting to hear the creature fall behind him. Instead he was met with a crushing blow. Link flew into a tree in the distance and blacked out. Then the gigantic creature came after Jonah.

Jonah didn't know what to do so he just dodged the creature's attacks for a while. Then he noticed that the creature had a deep crack down its back. The next time the creature attacked Jonah rolled through his legs. He tried to stab his sword into the creature's back only to be met with a tree trunk across the face. Jonah immediately blacked out, but was woken up by the pain of his leg getting crushed by the enormous creature's foot. Jonah backed himself against a tree and awaited the final blow.

Then suddenly Link, who had awoken from Jonah's cry of pain, jumped in between Jonah and the charging creature. However instead of getting into his stance, he actually put his sword away. He did a weird movement with his hands and slammed them on the ground. A dome of fire suddenly surrounded Link and Jonah and then spread out in every direction.

"Whoa! What did you do?" Jonah asked in amazement.

"I'll explain later. Now shield your eyes." Link instructed. Then there was a blinding flash and the flame turned blue and shot in every direction. Jonah opened up his eyes and all that stood in front of him something that looked like a standing piece of charcoal. Link walked over to the creature and with one powerful kick the creature crumbled into a pile of ashes and was blown away by the wind. The fire was also so powerful that the forest had been cleared for about five hundred around them.

"How'd you do that?" Jonah asked.

"Well, I learned a move very similar to what you just saw, but I eventually became more powerful. I learned a way to boost Din's Fire spell. You see I'm a Hylian and some Hylians are able to use magic." Link explained.

Because of Jonah's crushed leg Link had to carry him over his back. They got to the end of the clearing and back to the pitch-black forest. Two agonizing, depressing, and tiring days later it happened.

"Jonah, I have some bad news, we've run out of food and I don't know if we're even close to the end of the forest! You might have been right about this goddess forsaken place being inescapable." Link said.

"That's not good, I can't walk and carrying me will waste even more of your energy." Jonah said worriedly. For an hour they just sat there trying to think of a way. They both eventually fell asleep from complete exhaustion because they hadn't rested since they fought the two creatures so they could make better time.

"Hey, how long do we have to stay here? We've been here a week." complained one of the soldiers.

"We stay here until we find him! Those were orders from the General himself! Understood!" yelled the commanding officer that was tired of all his men complaining about the dark. The army had followed Link and Jonah into the forest, but was separated when they came to the area that Link burned. After another day of walking some scouts came to the place where Link and Jonah had fallen asleep.

"Quietly, go tell the rest of those bums that we found Jonah." One of the scouts commanded. Link, however, was woken up even though the scout was as quiet as possible. He pulled out his bow and strung an arrow. He let a silent arrow fly. The arrow hit the man in the back causing the scout to cry out in pain. Link let another arrow fly at the other scout who thought he had hidden well enough. The man didn't even have time to cry out as the arrow struck his face. Miles away the rest of the men heard the muffled scream and followed it to Link and Jonah. The army surrounded them and prepared to attack.

"Jonah, I only have enough energy to use Din's Blue Flame one more time, after that I'll collapse of loss of energy. Take some of this and drink it, then find a way out of this forest and get help." Link instructed as he threw Jonah a vile of red potion. Then he cast the spell and slammed his hands into the ground. The dome of fire followed by the flash of blue appeared. In a second there was no one left but Link and Jonah.

Jonah looked up and saw that Link had indeed collapsed. Jonah drank the bitter potion and it felt like his leg healed a little. He struggled to his feet and began to walk through the pitch-black forest. He fell every couple of steps because of his leg. He thought up a plan to get back without being lost. Every tem feet or so he would carve a deep gash in a tree, then on his return trip he would simply follow the marked trees back to Link.

About three agonizing hours later he saw the most beautiful sight in his life. He saw the daylight ahead of him. As he limped towards the light the trees began to thin out and then he was standing in a plain facing a small village. In the distance he could see the fabulous Castle Fynn rising high in the sky. He knew he couldn't go there without Link though. He continued through the field for another few hours before finally getting to the closest town. The odd thing was that there were some patches of snow in the shade of the trees, and it was unusually cold. Jonah figured it was an early snowstorm and put the thought out of his mind.

He made it to the town, by now his leg was hurting beyond imagination. He stumbled through a door into a bakery. He bought enough bread for him and Link. He then visited the potion shop and bought a red potion for him and a green for Link. Then he set out to the forest again.

He managed find the marks he made where he exited the forest. After wondering around a little he realized how crooked he must have been walking, because his marks were nowhere near a strait line. After many hours of searching he finally emerged into the newly burnt clearing. He immediately ran to where Link was and gave him some green potion. It was enough to wake him up, then Jonah gave him some bread and followed the same marks to find his way out again. The whole day was consumed by dragging the barely conscious Link back to the village. Where the locals were compassionate enough to give them a room at the inn free of charge for a week.

After a couple of days both men had recovered their strength and Link decided to teach Jonah a valuable move. They were now in the fields outside the city. "Now, you have to focus all your thoughts on your sword and on your next move." Link explained. Jonah tried as hard as he could, but nothing happened. He focused all his might on his sword, but no aura of power appeared on his blade. After a few more failed attempts Link got an idea. He launched himself at Jonah and pretended he was going to attack. Jonah dodged and thought only of getting Link back. Then he focused on his sword and it started glowing. Link charged his own and blocked.

"Nice, see you have to be focused only on the battle." Link complemented. "Now do that again and this time attack me like you mean it, you big wuss!" Link teased. It had been a long time since Jonah had a real friend, and it felt good to feel happy even with all the troubles surrounding him. So he charged his energy and a small glow appeared around his sword. Link did the same, but he felt like showing off a little so he channeled all his energy into his sword. A huge green aura surrounded the sword and he swung his sword weakly at Jonah. When his sword hit Jonah's the energy was released and Jonah flew back at least 10 feet. Link couldn't help but laugh at the look on Jonah's face as he flew through the air.

"Whoa, That was great! How long did it take to be able to do that?" Jonah asked in shock as he got off the ground.

"Years, I've had a lot of experience you know." Link said. After a while the two decided to get going. When the weather wouldn't warm up Jonah asked which month it was. What they didn't know is that it had been nearly two months since they first entered that treacherous forest

"What! I promised my wife Zelda that I wouldn't be gone for more than two weeks. Oh she's going be so mad at me, again." Link said with a chuckle.


	5. Rise of the Berserkers

**Chapter IV**

**Rise of the Berserkers**

In the light of the sunset a lone figure stood at the edge of a cliff staring blankly into the orange clouds that seemed to be caught on fire. There was a look of despair and loneliness in his gray and black eyes, but in his mind he knew that there was no way he could ever be happy. He only had one thing in his mind, a burning desire for power.

He focused his thoughts and got back to his mission. He proceeded to the base of the cliff he was on and he came to a small entrance with some carvings around the entrance. A soldier from the army came up to him.

"Are you sure you want to go through with this sir?" he asked nervously. Surrounding them was a pile of dead men that tried to enter, they were all dead, apparently some invisible force had slain all those who tried to enter the cave.

"I've got the key, I'll be fine." he said calmly. This shadowy figure gave the soldier the creeps, he was always so mysterious and seemed so sure about everything, as if he knew everything would work towards his advantage.

The cloaked figure pulled out a small rod with intricate designs into a hole in the stone wall and turned it clockwise. The small opening began glowing a light blue. The figure carefully put his arm through then he ducked and entered his next dungeon. He had been through at least 10 since Link and Jonah had entered the forest. None of them had turned up with what he wanted. He was looking for a relic that would release an unstoppable army of creatures. You see once he found the second of the ultimate weapons he would use it and the new army to crush all the nations and force them to make him their leader. Only then would he be happy.

He wandered through the dimly lit caverns until he came to a room. As he entered the door behind him closed, he knew what this meant, a battle. A pack of five wolfos appeared around the room. He concentrated and out of nowhere a gigantic sword appeared. It was as long as him and 10 inches wide at the base and reached fifteen inches wide at the end. It had a handle that had a swirl of silver and a blue gem. The blade itself was made of a holy platinum-like metal and the sharp edges were pure gold. The base of the blade was like a sliver of the moon and the points kind of encircled the blade. It had golden engravings in some ancient language running the length of the blade. It was extremely light for its size. It was the most magnificent sword ever created, even more powerful than Link's Master Sword. That's because the god of War known as Bog'thuule crafted it. It could also enable its holder to do just about anything to be victorious.

The biggest wolfos howled and two others charged. The figure swung his blade around his head and a circle of pure energy formed, then he clenched his fist and the energy shot out in every direction. There was a unified howl of pain and when the figure opened his eyes all five wolfos were lying on the ground burned and smoldering. The figure then used his almighty sword to make easy work of the rabid beasts. Then a door opened on the other side of the room. He put his sword away and continued. He faced many more enemies as he made his way through the dimly lit dungeon, even some that would have been challenging to Link, but he defeated them all with ease.

He eventually came to a fork in the path, he closed his eyes and calmed himself. A dark Triforce appeared on his hand. It was similar to the goddess' Triforce except that his was upside-down and larger. The Triforce on the right began to become even darker. He took that path into a huge room. A huge humanoid creature erupted out of the floor of the cave. It was at least 40 feet tall and completely covered with muscles. Its dark brown leathery skin contrasted its almost glowing orange eyes. It had four short horns sticking out of its head in a row. And had spikes protruding from shoulders and elbows. It had chains dangling from its limbs and around its neck.

"I miss the bosses from Hyrule, they would give me a little challenge at least, but what is this?" he thought mockingly.

The creature clasped his fists together and slammed them into the ground. The ground crumbled like a cracker and the shockwave temporarily paralyzed the intruder. The fist of the gigantic creature slammed into the figure. He flew against the cave wall, almost cracking a hole through the rocky wall. The figure summoned his sword and charged at the enraged behemoth. He hacked at the huge monster and just made it even madder.

It grabbed him and started to squeeze him. It squeezed so hard that the figures mouth started to bleed and pressure began to build in his head. The figure concentrated on his sword and slowly a pitch-black aura began to form around the sword. He opened his eyes, they were no longer normal, they were shining white. He screamed at the top of his voice and suddenly he was free. The creature clenched the bloody stub that used to be his hand. It stared in fear as the figure struck the ground with his sword and a shroud of darkness blinded it.

The figure went completely insane on the creature. Time literally stood still for the creature as the figure carved the creature of all its flesh. He moved faster than anything, he was just a blur of black and silver. The figure finally calmed down and looked at the pile of bones and blood.

"That ought to teach ya to mess with me," he said in victory as he spit a mouthful of blood at the ground. A small whirlwind appeared in the center of the room. The figure stepped into it and was carried to another room. It was a shrine of some sort. There was absolutely no light in the room besides the light created by the crystal. In the back of the room was a pedestal with a small dark red crystal floating above it. As the figure approached he couldn't help but smile and laugh at what was before him.

"How something so small could hold so much power, and it'll soon be all mine." he said as he laughed evilly. He took the crystal from its resting place. He could feel a powerful evil flow into his arm, it was so strong that he almost dropped the crystal. Then a whirlwind appeared in the center of the room and he was warped to the outside of the dungeon. He saw the cliff where he was standing before he entered the dungeon.

"That would be a perfect place." he thought. He quickly climbed to the top and took out the crystal. He held it up to the full moon and it cast a dark red light over the area as far as the eye could see. The ground began to shake, then out of nowhere thousands beings began to form. They were all completely gray and about 8 feet tall. They had eerie red eyes. They were equipped with full body armor and curved blades strapped to their right forearms, small shields on their left, and helmets with long flat horns facing strait up.

"Rise my army of Berserkers! Obey your new master! I will use you to bring the world to its knees before me!" shouted the figure, laughing maniacally at what he had finally achieved. Then the creatures stopped coming at around ten thousand Berserkers. Then they all turned into dots of light and returned to the crystal to be called upon at a time of battle. Then the man made the long journey back to Castle Fynn.

"You're back late, what happened?" Agahnim questioned.

"I had some personal matters to attend to." the figure answered.

"Well no matter. I've found it, the Mask of Supreme Being. The ultimate weapon will soon be ours." Agahnim said excitedly.

"Great! So where is it? Do we have it?" the figure asked.

"No but I know where it is. All we have to do is get there before Link and his new little friend get there."

"WHAT they're still alive! How? They were in that forest for two months! Understand this Agahnim, if they find it first I will be back for you." the figure threatened.

"Don't worry we'll get it, now calm down. We must discuss a plan to get to it." Agahnim said trying to ignore the threat.

_**I have to get it first. Then I can escape from this disgustingly weak body**. _Daagog thought from deep within Agahnim. **_If I can get my hands on the Mask of Supreme Being I can regain my full power and have revenge on those cursed goddesses for imprisoning me. I managed to stop them from stealing my power by creating a Dark Triforce to hold my own power, but that pathetic warrior found it and claimed the power for himself. What he doesn't know is that there is a fourth that I lost while in the Sacred Realm that holds my true strength. He may contain Danger, Destruction, and Direction, but he doesn't hold the most powerful. The Triforce of Domination, with it he could crush anyone who got in his way. _**

_**It won't matter if he finds that mask though. If the same being holds the Mask of Supreme Being and the Sword of Rog'Thuule then they will be completely immortal. The only thing that could stand a chance of facing him would be Supreme Being himself, but he hasn't shown himself since Creation. Not even I could do anything. If I can find the mask I'll be free to call upon Dominion and crush the Golden Triforce and then I'll kill my sisters and I might as well destroy this pathetic planet they created while I'm at it.**_

****With that goal in mind Agahnim went with the hidden figure to prepare to get the mask.


	6. BitterSweet Revenge

A/N: Whats up people. I just want to than **Tristan Lanantyr** for his reviews. I did what you suggested again. For eveyone else out there, please review.I beg ofyou.:(

**Chapter V**

**Bitter-Sweet Revenge**

Jonah and Link had finally made it to their destination, the royal city of Fynn. Thick high walls surrounded the very large city and the magnificent castle could be seen towering above everything else in the city. The city actually looked more like a military barrak than a city. The houses were all exactly the same and equally spaced apart. As they entered a look of disappointment grew on Link's face.

"This is your royal city? Wow I expected more. I imagined it to be equal if not bigger and more prosperous than Hyrule Castle Town" Link said as he looked around.

"Yeah, it was magnificent until Agahnim came to power. That cursed wizard runs this city like a horrible dictator. He cares nothing for the thousands of people under his rule, all he focuses on is obtaining more power!" Jonah cursed. "Look around, there's the market, if you can call it that. All these people are scrounging around for a couple of dollars a day. Half are homeless and many are diseased. I will get that mage and make him pay, although nothing I can do will equal the pain that these people are going through."

Link looked around at the almost unbearable sight. It looked like Market Town after Ganondorf's rise to power so many years ago. Jonah was right. Most of the buildings had fallen into deep disrepair. There were two rundown stores and a couple of wagons selling goods. Then he saw the people, they were dressed in rags and all terribly skinny. Some had sores and rashes and almost all had cavities in their teeth. Link was disgusted by the evilness of Agahnim.

"It was never this bad in Hyrule, its almost as if Agahnim has become more evil than before. I thought it would be impossible." Link said as he swallowed back his tears. "I promise I will help you defeat this madman once and for all. I promise!"

"Thanks. Ok I think we should ask some of the elders of they know what Agahnim is up to. Maybe we can actually make sense of this mess." Jonah said tying to change the subject. So the two walked down a few more grungy dirt streets until the came to a large decorated building where the elders would be. As they entered they heard some low mumbling coming from a hall across the room. They approached the hall when a guard stepped in their way.

"No one allowed inside." he said sternly.

"But we really need to speak to them." Jonah pleaded.

"NO! Hey guards we got some brats over here." As he said that seven guards holding spears approached them. "You made me do this ya know." the first guard said.

Jonah was the first to draw his sword. Link followed his example and started charging up a spin attack. He knew it was the best way to eliminate multiple enemies at once. When they came close enough he let it loose. Clank, clank, clank, they all blocked his attack except one who was bleeding freely from a new, but not fatal wound on his side.

Jonah then went after one of them. He let loose attack after attack. The guard he was fighting was a little out of shape and was quickly wearing out. Jonah aimed one powerful blow at the spear that the guard was cowering behind. The spear splintered and Jonah was free to attack.

The guard did something unexpected, he let Jonah attack him. When his sword was very close the guard actually caught the blade. The blade was coming down harder than expected and found its way through the guards thick mail gloves. The blade sent a gush of blood squirting. He yanked the sword away from Jonah and threw it across the floor. Then he threw a powerful punch that landed in Jonah's stomach. Jonah reeled back a little trying to catch the breath that had been knocked put. This allowed the guard to get up. Then Jonah threw a blow at the guard's face, sending him staggering back with a broken, bleeding nose.

"nuule pay for nat." he said. He came after Jonah, but was knocked down by another guard that had been blasted away by Link's charged attack. The other four guards ganged up on Link, thinking he was a bigger threat. Jonah retrieved his sword and jumped into the fray of sharp metal. A couple of seconds later one of the guards was knocked out and another was bleeding heavily from a stab wound.

"ENOUGH!" yelled an old cracking voice. The guards immediately backed away and bowed slightly. Before them stood five older people all dressed the in the same elaborate yellow robes. Two were men and three were women. "If they wish to see us this badly then let them pass." instructed one of the elderly women. "Now what brings you young men to these parts?"

"Well your honor, we need your help. You see, we've been after a couple of really bad guys, but we don't know what they're doing or why." Jonah explained. The old figures just stood there.

"Well! Are you going to help or what?" Link shouted in annoyance.

"Link shut up! Your speaking to the wisest people on the country, show some respect." Jonah barked back.

"It's fine," said one man "we're used to it by now, and yes we will help you if we can. Come in, come in." he gestured towards the door. They all sat on the ground around a very low table with a bunch of scrolls scattered around.

"Don't mind the mess. Who is it that you're looking for?" the youngest man said.

"I know it sounds crazy, but we're after a Agahnim and a man named Cynan." Jonah said kind of embarrassed.

"Actually it's not. You see these scrolls we were just reading foretold of a band of brave warriors that would arise and challenge all odds to find the relic with ultimate power." the oldest man explained.

"What relic are you talking about?" Jonah asked confused.

"You mean you don't know about the ultimate weapons?" the oldest woman asked.

"No, I don't" Link interrupted, "I came to Pandera from Hyrule following a mysterious warrior who showed some interest in the masks of Termania."

"Well that's not surprising," offered one of the men. "You see there are two relics besides the two Triforces that were crafted by the hands of the gods themselves. One is already in that warrior's possession; this is the Sword of Bog'thuule. The god of war himself crafted this weapon for a heavenly battle. The other is a mask crafted by Supreme Being himself. No one is able to pronounce his name in any tongue so we dubbed him that. It is said that he created not only the universe, but that he is above all the other gods as well."

"So that evil warrior is after that mask." figured Jonah.

"Yes, but that's not all." said another voice. Link turned to see another figure standing in the room, he was dressed different. He had an elaborate green robe with gold trimming and was taller and younger than the rest. He had bight brown hair neatly trimmed and a beard that extended up to his sideburns. He had noble brown eyes and a deep throaty voice.

"Greetings," the elders all said in unison. The strong looking man then explained the legend to Jonah and Link.

He explained the creation of the universe in an empty void. He told them about how Supreme Being cast a mask to one day summon his power back to this realm. After doing so he vanished never to be seen again. He told the two warriors that a being so powerful granted many special creatures immortality and control over an aspect of creation. His expression turned grim as he explained that one of the gods was turned to an evil creature that eventually gathered a horde massive enough to challenge the other gods.

"On that fateful day Bog'thuule led the heavenly host in a clash against this dark fiend. During the coarse of the battle he lost his sword as it was cast to a then uncharted planet. After the devastating battle the dark god was defeated and banished to a prison of his choosing. Being all too clever he chose the one to which he cast the Sword." The grand elder explained.

He also told them Agahnim's part in this. He explained that the same dark god that fought the heaven's host that day had possessed him. He told the two warriors that if he got to the mask he would be granted the power of Supreme Being himself. He also explained that the dark shadowy figure possessed the sword and that if the dark god got a hold of that as well that all the universe would be annihilated and rebuilt according to his will.

Link and Jonah stared blankly as they tried to take in all this information at once. The elders knew that this would be hard to believe but they assured them that all the prophecies had been fulfilled and that there was no doubt that this chapter in time could be coming to a close.

After the lecture Link and Jonah thanked the elders for all their assistance. They had come out with a lot more information than they thought. Information that changed their entire idea of what the divine worlds are like. They were a lot like mortals', only on a much grander scale with more at stake.

Later that day the two went to one of the local inns for the night. Jonah had to pay double because Link was a Hylian. Even being seen with a Hylian cost him more than normal. Link had to give the room keeper a fairly large bribe to even get a room, and the room still cost double the normal rates. Link hated being treated so poorly. He didn't like being honored almost to the point of divinity, but he did expect to be treated like a normal person, not less.

"Well one thing still bugs me about the elder's story. They said that a band would rise to defeat this evil, but there are only two of us. Doesn't a band mean a group? Kind of weird don't you think?" Jonah pointed out as they finally located their rooms.

"You're right, but I think their story is still true. A lot of my adventures started with some crazy legend." Link said. After a lot of thought about what they heard the two finally drifted into a light sleep.

The next day Link woke up to find Jonah's room already empty. He looked around the inn, but he was nowhere to be seen. Link finally got dressed and went out. He saw Jonah training and practicing on an old fence post. He was trying to make his charged attacks more effective. One particularly good one actually split the thick post down the middle.

"Nice work!" Link applauded.

"Link, why did you sleep so late, its almost noon." Jonah asked anxiously.

"Why, what's the rush?" Link asked kind of confused with his hurry.

"Hellooo," Jonah dragged on, "We're in Fynn. Castle, Agahnim, evil dictator, super evil warrior. Any of that ring a bell." Jonah said mockingly. He had grown to know that he could push Link around a little before he snapped. He had had only one other friend in his life and was always looked at as a loner. Some even saw him as kind of dark, but Link had begun to change his mind about people. He began to see that not everyone was evil or so caught up in their own agenda to notice anything else. Jonah began to embrace the fact that some people still cared. With that understanding came a little glimmer of joy.

"We should go to the castle and maybe we can defeat Agahnim before he gets to the relic. Besides, I'm ready for some action. I haven't been in a good fight since the forest." Jonah said. So the two made the short journey to the castle.

It was a magnificent sight to see. It was made of gray bricks and had vines growing up the side of the wall. The main building was at least 10 stories high with a series of what looked like spiraling towers all curved around a thick middle one. This tower was at least 40 stories high and had a pointed tip that looked like it could slice through the clouds. The castle was protected by an enormous moat that rose into a barrier of hard stone around the base of the castle. The drawbridge that guarded the main gate that was at least 20 feet high.

"Behold! Castle Fynn, the largest structure in Pandera." Jonah said proudly.

The two looked for a way over the moat; they saw a stump on the other side. Link told Jonah how to use the hook shot and he flew across, then he threw it back and Link got across. They entered the huge gate and stepped inside. The Great Hall was basically half of the bottom of the castle. It had long red banners hanging from the roof and a long blue carpet made a path to the elaborate, gold throne. The statues in the room looked so real that they seemed to be almost breathing. As the two marveled at the structure something caught Jonah's attention. Then Jonah saw what it was, a tall muscular man was standing at the other side of the room facing the other way.

"I…It's y…you!" Jonah shouted with the anger stealing the words from his mouth.

"Yes… it's me. See hero I told you I'd see you again," the man said with a deep strong voice as he turned around revealing his scarred face. He was clad in dark black armor with a dark purple cape and gold boots. He had his twin swords at his side like he was already prepared for this fight.

"General Cynan! I'm gonna take you down right here, right now!" Jonah threatened.

"You can try, but just to be fair we'll have to keep your new friend out of this one. Berserkers arise!" he shouted. As he did the statues that seemed so real came forward with their blades ready for battle. "Attack the one in green, leave the other to me!"

The large creatures began to advance towards Link. He was outnumbered 15 to 1 and these things looked very strong, and as Link would find out, they were. Link charged at the nearest Berserker and swung his sword vertically. The creature was caught off guard and barely managed to keep the blade from crashing to his head. Link took advantage and quickly came around with a horizontal slice that beheaded the creature sending a flow of purple blood all over the place.

Another creature came up from behind and hit Link on the side of his face with his shield. The force of the attack sent Link tumbling backwards to the floor. A gash on the side of his face was bleeding pretty badly and his eye was swollen. Another creature stood at Link's head ready to chop him in half with its huge blade. From the ground Link thrust his sword into the creature's gut. A squirt of blood flowed down his sword and dripped all over him. The creature fell over onto the blade sending it all the way through its body. Link tried to get up, but the creature was extremely heavy. He kicked the lifeless fiend into a group of them. Before he was able to get up he was assaulted with a barrage of kicks to his sides and head. Link completely blacked out after a thunderous kick to the head. A small pool of blood formed from Link's head wounds.

Then the Berserkers formed a circle around Jonah and Cynan to keep either from escaping, this would be a fight to the death.

"It's time to take you down you demented freak!" Jonah shouted as he charged at the awaiting general. The general barely made an effort to block Jonah's assault. Then with a quick liquid movement the general attacked with the sword in his other hand. Luckily Jonah was able to see the attack and back flipped out of the way, but just as he was regaining his posture he was met with a powerful kick to his chest.

The blow sent him sprawling on the floor. He came to a stop at the spot where Link was still knocked out. Jonah noticed that Link's shield had fallen just within reach. He quickly reached between a Berserker's legs and took the shield, just in time too. Cynan had swung his sword at Jonah, but what he expected to be a cry of defeat was actually a loud clang. Jonah got up, it felt strange to be fighting with a shield now, but it proved quite helpful.

The fighting continued for two more hours and even the strong general was becoming tired, but Jonah was completely exhausted. All of Cynan's moves seemed to flow so easily while Jonah's were choppier. They both got a couple of good hits in on each other.

"You're pretty good for a little punk, but it all ends now." Cynan taunted.

"Yah you're right, and I'm going to win." Jonah replied. Then Cynan began reciting the words "I'll kill you, I'll kill you." As if chanting those words recharged him somehow. The taunting began to get to Jonah and it became louder each time he said it. He shouted it one last time and then went ballistic on the exhausted Jonah. He rained down blow after blow on the weakened warrior. The shield blocked the critical blows, but Jonah's arms began to ache badly after a while. Jonah was wearing down fast and was on his knees just blocking his head. Many hits landed on his sides and legs, but Jonah managed to hang on.

Then somehow he managed to get enough of an opening to stab Cynan between his hip and leg causing Cynan to stagger backwards a step. He knew that that was the only opening he would have so he exploited it. With the slight delay from Cynan, Jonah was able to successfully disarmed one of Cynan's swords. Then he did something that he knew Cynan wouldn't expect. With the last of his remaining energy Jonah decided to try one last desperate move. He backed away from Cynan and closed his eyes. He focused all his energy into his sword and it began to glow.

Link opened his eyes just in time to see Jonah charging his sword. A pretty large blue aura formed around the sword. General Cynan didn't know what to expect, he had never experienced this before, so he just guarded. Jonah launched forward at Cynan. There was a large crack and when Jonah opened his eyes and saw Cynan's shattered blade and Cynan was now at his mercy.

"This is for my parents and for Steven!" Jonah shouted. Then with a slight hesitation he plunged his sword deep into Cynan's chest until it came out the other side sending a gush of blood all over. He removed his blood stained sword from the bleeding clump of flesh. The battle was over, Jonah stood victorious over the lifeless body of his greatest nemesis. All the Berserkers around turned into little red lights and disappeared.

"You did it! You beat your greatest enemy! I couldn't have done it better if I tried." Link complemented. Jonah just stood there stunned at what he had done. He was so surprised he didn't even notice that he was bleeding heavily from just about everywhere.

Link snapped him out of it and they both headed to the potion shop and bought enough to heal themselves. Then they set off to catch up to Agahnim. The Elders had told them where they would most likely be headed. So the two borrowed a couple of horses from the stables. Link really missed Epona, she was always a big help, but Link learned to deal with the horse he was given. Then they set off.


	7. So Close yet so, so Far Away

**A/N:** No new reviews, how very discouraging. Well then I'm just going to post this one for my own pleasure. If anyone is still reading this story, please review. The chapters come out so much better when there's inspiration behind them.

**Chapter VI**

**So Close yet So, So Far Away**

His eyes were burning with desire as he and Agahnim rode to the location of the Mask of Supreme Being. He knew that if he wanted ultimate power he'd have to get the mask first. With that power, he could finally be complete inside, Agahnim, or rather Daagog inside of him, also wanted the mask.

They had been riding for nearly a week and had crossed over mountains and rivers. They now found themselves on a plain that stretched as far as the eye could see. This was called the Endless Pasture. After a couple more days of riding and getting nowhere the shadowy figure began to get upset.

"Are you sure you know what you're talking about! We've been riding so long that this stupid horse is starting to limp." the figure said frustrated. "You know, I think you took me out here to get rid of me. Well that isn't going to work. You and me are going to find that mask or starve to death trying!"

"I assure you, I'm not playing around. Just be patient. We'll get there soon enough. There's a reason that no one's ever found it you know." Agahnim slyly replied. So the two kept on. Another day went by and the two began to get very tired and hungry. They were at each other's throats the entire time.

Then finally, just as they had just about given up hope. a region of high plateaus and mesas arose in the horizon. There was a strange gold glow coming from on top of one of the highest plateaus. They both knew what it was. Agahnim sped his horse a little faster to get ahead of the other figure. He noticed this and sped faster than Agahnim. Soon the two were both racing their horses as fast as they would go.

The plateau was about five hundred feet away from them when they were blown off their horses as the ground exploded a couple of feet in front of them. When they got back to their feet they saw what looked like a statue of a lion. The huge statue had a lion's body and mane with the head of a man, Like a sphinx, except this one had four enormous wings sprouting from its back.

Then with a thunderous voice it spoke these words. "I am Ramos the guardian of the most valuable and powerful object in existence. My orders from the gods were to annihilate any creature, man or beast, that ventures this close to the treasure."

The gigantic monster then took flight. The flapping of its wings created a huge dust storm so that the two couldn't see. The black robed figure summoned his almighty weapon. He did a move similar to Link's spin attack. The sword created such a wind that it blew away the sand from everywhere within 1,000 feet. Agahnim then cast a spell and a small orb of dark purple energy formed in his hands. He threw three orbs at the sphinx. Two exploded before hitting the creature, this temporarily caused it to close its eyes. The third hit the creature's side and a big chunk of it was blown off.

The creature roared in pain and prepared for his counter attack. It reared it head and paused for a second. When it lowered its head a stream of flames erupted from the creature's mouth. Agahnim was able to summon a shield spell just in time to stop the flames from burning him to cinders. The creature then dove at Agahnim. The force of the impact crashed through Agahnim's shield and blasted him away. Agahnim's bones were crushed as he flew into the side of a rocky hill. The sphinx reared up once more to finish off the evil mage.

From behind the black-cloaked figure watched as the whole thing happened. When he saw that Agahnim was no longer a threat he decided to go after the creature himself. He took a huge leap, boosted by the magic of his weapon and found himself on the sphinx's back. With a powerful slash to each side the figure's sword easily amputated the two back wings.

The creature bucked the figure off and took flight again, this time it didn't go as high due to the loss of two wings. Streams of thick blood oozed from the stubs that were once its wings. The robed figure was then assaulted with a series of fire blasts. The figure dodged and actually sliced through all of the attacks except one. The flames had caught the figure's left arm, which was now singed and burned from the fire. The figure had never experienced such excruciating pain in this life.

This caused him to become furious. He screamed and his eyes started shining an almost blinding white. His sword burst into a black aura and the Triforce symbol on it began to glow red-hot. The figure jumped high and with a slice of his supercharged sword cut the creature down it's right side. As blood began pouring from the wound the sphinx began to feel weak, but this weakness unlocked an attack fueled by the creature's uncontrollable rage.

The creature's entire body erupted into blue flames and its eyes began to glow bright blue. It now breathed a wide powerful flow of blue flames that devoured all the vegetation in the area. The figure was so enraged and his sword so charged that the normally devastating attack barely affected him at all.

Agahnim had woken up while the creature was transforming into the fiery beast. He cast a heal spell on himself and then started chanting a spell and a bright yellow sphere formed between both his hands. He limped into the battle and was prepared to unleash it.

"WAIT! I've got a better idea!" the figure interrupted. He whispered the plan into Agahnim's ear. Understanding what he was going to do Agahnim continued to charge his energy while the figure blocked all the creatures flame attacks.

Finally it was ready, the sphere was 10 feet around and glowing very brightly. The figure charged up his sword quickly and slashed at the sphere with all his strength. This sent the orb of now swirling yellow and black energy at the fiery beast. It attempted to destroy the attack by attacking the ball. Its flames, however, only made the attack even stronger.

With incredible force and power the sphere hit the sphinx directly in the face. The creature's whole body was blown apart and the pieces of it crashed to the ground. There were chunks of sizzling flesh scattered through the whole area and the body itself was caught on fire and burning away.

Agahnim then used another heal spell on them both and then they continued on to the high plateau. By now it was night and the desert began to get very cold.

Link and Jonah had taken a better way and had caught up to them after a week. While their enemies were fighting they began to climb the plateau that the bright gold glow was coming from. Link pulled himself the final step and looked at what was in front of him.

There was an elaborate pedestal made of marble. It was decorated with every kind of jewel there is. Clutched in two delicate silver hands was the most beautiful things they had ever seen. A mask made of gold purer than the Triforce. It had a strip of rubies down the forehead and some brilliant blue crystals lined the face, the eyes were slightly sunken in and it had some symbols engraved in its cheeks. It shone with an unnatural radiance and lit up the night sky around the plateau. Jonah walked up next to Link with his mouth dropped open.

"That's it, the Mask of Supreme Being!" Jonah said excitedly. They got closer and Link and Jonah both reached for the mask at the same time. They both looked at each other and both backed away.

"So who gets it?" Jonah asked.

"I don't know, we are both powerful warriors. I'm sure we could both use it wisely." Link said.

"Hey Link, you should take it. I only wanted to destroy Cynan and Agahnim, I never wanted power." Jonah said humbly. So Link reached forward to take the mask.

"Hands off! That's mine!" Shouted a voice from behind them.

Link and Jonah turned to see Agahnim and a strange robed figure standing coolly at the edge of the plateau. Jonah and Link gave each other a quick glance; both nodded, and surrounded the mask.

Then for the first time the figure took off his black robe. He looked like what Link might look like in a few years. He was only about an inch taller than him and a little more muscular. His skin was a deathly pale white. He had black marks tattooed into his face. He had three thick marks on his cheeks, spike shaped marks sticking down from under his eyes, and an outline of an upside down triangle on his forehead. He had platinum-white hair that he let grow out a little to cover one side of his face. His eyes were white and the irises were a mixture of gray and black. He was dressed in a tunic much like Link's except it was black and shredded. He wore a little black armor over his chest and shoulders, but that's all. He had gray pants and pitch-black boots. There was just a presence around him, a presence of evil and fear. Any person would automatically have cowered in fear, but the two warriors were too close to the end of their journey to be scared away.

"My real name is not pronounceable in Hylian or human tongue but you may call me Thanatos! I am the unstoppable warrior!" he said revealing his whole identity. "I have lived many lives and been recreated many times, with each life I gain more experience as well as more power. This will be the one I gain the most out of, because I'll get the mask and the sword!"

It was Agahnim, however, that seemed to flow with evil. The deep wrinkles in his pale blue face seemed even deeper than usual and his eyes had a strange evil in them. The dark crimson cloths and turban definitely helped his appearance. He was definitely more evil looking than when Link dealt with him in Hyrule. The evil radiating from him even made Link's bones chill.

"This is it, it's time to finish this! The victor of this battle shall be the ultimate warrior and soon more powerful than any other god!" shouted Agahnim with a long maniacal laugh. Then something happened that even scared the evil Thanatos. His voice suddenly changed in the middle of his laugh. It became much lower and seemed to echo with every word said. "**Not that it matters since I am already a god! I only possessed this pathetic mage so I could get my hands on that mask!" **

With what seemed like a good intro Thanatos summoned his mighty blade. Link's mouth dropped when he saw the spectacular platinum blade that could only have been crafted by a god's hands. He drew his Master Sword, which now seemed very flimsy compared to his foe's. Jonah also drew his, which he knew he was match against Thanatos'. This would be the hardest fight Jonah had ever been in.

Thanatos started the fight. He jumped forward and swung his blade at Link. Link blocked it with his sword, but was pretty surprised that he actually survived. Link took the offensive now; he attacked with a vertical attack, which was easily blocked. He followed with a thrust that his foe sidestepped. Thanatos took advantage of this and slashed Link across his back. Link let out a cry of agony as the blade seemed to burn as well as cut.

Jonah finally built up enough courage to charge at Agahnim. He brought his sword down with all his strength, but Agahnim easily predicted this and put up a barrier. He then blasted Jonah away with some magic. Then Agahnim lifted his hand to the sky and a bolt of lightning came out of nowhere and struck Jonah. He cried out as the lightning surged through his nervous system. He immediately collapsed and his vision began to blur.

Agahnim laughed at the pathetic sight and then without mercy he grabbed Jonah by the throat and dangled him from his neck to choke out any life that still remained. His pointy nails poked through Jonah's skin on his neck and he began to bleed all over Agahnim's arm. With the little energy he had left Jonah thrust his sword into the unguarded Agahnim. Agahnim released his grip to treat his new wound. Jonah knew this was his chance he stabbed Agahnim again, this time in his gut. Blood spewed everywhere, but instead of collapsing like expected, Agahnim cast a spell and his hand started to glow. He grabbed Jonah's head and began to chant.

Jonah began feeling a strange cold surge through him. It seemed like the blood in his veins was freezing. His very bones seemed to freeze over, actually they did. Agahnim had frozen the poor boy solid. He was about to cast his dark energy spell to blow the frozen statue to bits, but he was knocked down by Link who crashed into him.

Thanatos laughed at how weak Link was. Link was bleeding heavily from his side and back. Now he also had a broken jaw from the kick that Thanatos had delivered. Link slowly got to his feet and began to charge his sword. A green aura formed around the Master Sword and continued to grow. Thanatos copied the idea and charged his sword, but the aura that formed was pitch black and as he charged his sword his eyes changed to that unnatural white.

Link waited for the perfect time to unleash a spin attack. The attack sliced Thanatos many times along his whole body. He began to bleed from the many new wounds, but he was so focused that the pain hardly bothered him. It was his turn to attack now and he did. He jumped as high as he could, which was now very high due to the magic of the blade and came crashing down at Link. Link quickly rolled out of his way and managed to dodge the attack. His foe landed and when the dust from the attack cleared he saw Thanatos standing in a crater 5 feet deep still holding his sword to the ground.

"Lucky for you I was a little off, but your luck is about to run out." Thanatos taunted.

Link leapt at his foe for another attack. Agahnim saw his opportunity to destroy them both. Just as Thanatos blocked Link's attack and while their blades were still touching he summoned another lightning bolt to strike the swords. The current swept through the two sending them both back 10 feet.

Thanatos rose first and realized what happened; he knew what he had to do. He charged his sword and spun around twice. He released his sword, sending it flying at the evil wizard. He put up a barrier, but the supercharged sword sliced through it like butter. The blade pierced the wizard's chest and came out his back. The energy surged through his body making his death even more painful. He coughed up a lungful of blood as almost all of his important organs were ripped to shreds. He fell on the blade, making it go deeper through. A large pool of blood formed around the lifeless mage. The last thing he saw was the golden mask that he was so close to getting then everything went black. He was finally defeated for good.

Thanatos then heard a loud shout of disappointment as a dark shadow emerged from the wizard's mouth. It was Daagog, or rather pieces of him, he had some of his head and some of his chest he had hands with no arms and one leg with no foot. He was still only partially free from his prison in the Triforce. He was so black that all the light around was sucked into the darkness. He had to have been around ten feet tall. He was humanoid in shape except for the two large pointy wings that curled around him. He also had two long horns that came strait out of his skull and then curved forward. His eyes were made of flames and when he opened his mouth waves of heat distorted the air around him.

"**Well, that was very impressive, but unfortunately for you it was the worst thing you could have done. Now I'll finally have a body almost worthy of holding me.**" Daagog said in a voice that crackled like fire. He opened his tattered wings and flew strait into Thanatos' body and took control of the unstoppable warrior. **This is better than I imagined, I have the sword, the dark Triforce, plus my own powers, and soon I'll have the mask. Not even Supreme Being can stop that.**

Nature itself seemed to shriek in horror at the evil that had been created. The rivers dried up and the moon grew dark, there were earthquakes all over the world, volcanoes erupted, and even many stars exploded in the sky. The whole planet suddenly looked almost deserted and destroyed. This was just from the power that was created now; if Daagog got his way even this would look very insignificant.

Link had revived in time to see what happened, but was so weak he could barely move. The thought of all the people hurt made Link's blood boil. He looked at his new foe Daagog. He charged toward Link and Link charged at him with all his remaining strength. They both charged their sword and swung at the same time. Link somehow survived, but he felt lighter. Three seconds later Link heard a clank; he turned around to see most of the Master Sword's blade sticking out of the ground. He looked down and saw he was holding the handle and about six inches of blade.

As the blade cracked a fowl evil wind swept through the Temple of Time in Hyrule. The spell that had kept Ganondorf locked away was broken along with the Master Sword. With a deep laugh the king of evil stepped back into the real world.

Link's all-powerful foe took advantage of the situation and unleashed his final attack. He spun around twice slicing Link across the gut, then across the chest. He let some evil energy seep through the blade and made this a wound that could never fully heal. Then with the momentum he gained from the attack he punched Link extra hard square in the face, making a gush of blood splatter all over his face. Link flew back and began to lose consciousness. The last thing he heard was the evil laugh of triumph coming from Daagog.

The victor turned slowly to look at his prize.

He reverently picked the mask out of its resting place and held it just staring at it for a minute. As he reached to put it to his face the mask began to crack and suddenly crumbled into dust in his hands.

"**NOOOOO! NO! NO! Why_!" _**Shouted Daagog in a voice that echoed through the whole area.

Behind him a figure appeared dressed in all white flashed into existence. He appeared to be very young; he had a kind face and a long white ponytail. It was Terry. He looked Daagog strait in the eyes.

"**Oh no! I… it c… can't be. S…S… Supreme Being, I…it's you. I can sense your presence within that body, but it can't be! You haven't been seen since you created everything." **Daagog stuttered as he cowered in fear at the most powerful being ever.

"**_WELL YOU'RE LOOKING AT HIS SON YOU FOOL. I'VE CHOSEN TO COME ASSIST THESE HEROES IN THEIR JOURNEY. OH, AND DON'T WORRY, I WON'T KILL YOU. I'LL LEAVE THAT TO THEM. IT'LL BE MORE HUMILIATING FOR YOU TO BE BEATEN BY MERE MORTALS"_** Terry said with a deep powerful voice that echoed through space and time.

"**But the mask, why did it crumble. I should have been more powerful than you." **Daagog protested.

"**_IT WAS A FAKE. MY FATHER MADE IT TO DISTRACT EVERYONE FROM THE REAL ONE."_** Supreme Being answered matter-of-factly. Then with a snap of his finger a blinding light engulfed the plateau and when it died down Thanagog was standing there alone.


	8. Hyrule

**Well how do you like it so far? If you're still reading it that must mean you do. Good news; I've got some big plans ahead. Bad news; the mid-story drag begins. This next chapter is almost completely random. Only three important things get done, the rest just takes up space. Believe me though, this is as bad as it gets. PLEASE hang in there. Also give me ideas so I can redo this embarrassment. Like always, please review. I really appreciate every comment. Oh crap, I've started rambling again. Ok here we go! **

**Chapter VII**

**Hyrule**

_He had been floating through a bright tube surrounded by blackness for what seemed like an eternity. Finally he arrived at a grassy plain. He looked around and saw a gold sky, the grass was perfect green, the rivers were as clear as crystal, and the trees were all bearing fruit. He knew he was in the Sacred Realm for he had seen it once before. He wandered around for what seemed like days maybe weeks, but the sun never set on the land. He recognized the area he was in though. It was strangely similar to the land of Hyrule, except different as well. It was a hard feeling to describe, but he felt calm in this place._

_Suddenly the sky became heavily clouded with a dark purple and black storm that he could sense was somehow evil. He wondered why he was seeing this; he always thought the Sacred Realm was supposed to be free of evil. As his feeling of uneasiness grew he kept walking and the trees and plants began to get thorny and dry, the grass turned to the same purple as the sky and the water turned almost red._

_Then without warning he was taken up to another area. He couldn't see anything due to the blinding white light that engulfed everything. Then as the light cleared he began to catch glimpses of other planets and universes. He just stood there in a daze. Then he heard the voice someone he had heard right before he was transported to this land, it was Terry. He turned to see a figure dressed in a bright white suit. He explained to Link that he was really Supreme Being in human form. He explained that all the gods and goddesses had different forms to visit the different worlds. Then he explained the split between the Realm. _

_He said that the gold side was because of the golden Triforce of the goddesses and the dark side was from a dark Triforce made by Daagog. He told Link the legend_ (the prologue) _and that the fourth piece of the dark Triforce would have the power to shatter the golden one and Daagog would be completely free. Then with his last words to Link, Supreme Being told him that he wasn't going to die yet, even though he should have. There were still things yet for him to do. There was another blinding flash and then everything was black._

Link slowly opened his eyes and found himself in familiar surroundings. He looked up only to see the most beautiful face in the world. It was the face of his wife Zelda. She had apparently fallen asleep watching him because she was sprawled on his legs.

"Hey baby, its good to finally see you again." Link said quietly, Gliding his hand over her soft cheeks and lips.

"Oh Link, you're finally awake!" She shouted as he leaned over him and kissed him for the first time in nearly 3 months. Link didn't say anything so he wouldn't disturb the moment.

Then he heard the voices that made his heart skip a beat. "EEW! Mommy and daddy are kissing." Aaron said teasingly.

"So, that's what grown ups do." Lisa said. Link just looked at them bicker back and forth. The two kids were five years old and had a mix of Link and Zelda's personalities. Aaron was wearing a blue tunic much like Link's and Lisa was wearing a red dress.

"What, I don't even get a hug?" Link asked pretending to be sad. Both kids came running and jumped on Link and hugged him tight. It hurt like crazy because of his new wounds, but Link was happier than ever at that moment. Link might as well have been in heaven at that moment. He was home with his family, nothing compared to the feeling.

Then the door opened and Jonah slowly walked in followed by Terry. Link was about to say something about him, but Terry motioned for Link to not say anything.

"Well it looks like the sleeping bum finally decided to wake up." Jonah teased. "How ya feeling. You look better than when I saw you last."

"Why are you asking me all these questions? Was I out for that long?" Link asked being kind of confused.

"Yes baby, you've been in a coma since Terry brought you and Jonah back here two weeks ago." Zelda answered.

"Whoa, I guess I owe all of you some thanks then." Link said thankfully.

"Don't worry about it, that's why we're here." Jonah said.

Link slowly got himself out of bed. This only resulted in Link falling ungracefully back to where he was laying because of the spinning in his head. He tried again and stumbled over to his dresser. And picked out a clean blue tunic to wear.

"Do you mind?" Link asked as he motioned for them to leave.

"Oh, of course, my bad." Jonah said as they rushed out of the room. Link took off his tunic and saw the many scars and still healing wounds from his last battle. It sent shivers down his spine. _How am I going to defeat an evil that strong?_

He finished getting ready; he now wore a blue tunic and white pants. He headed out to see everyone. He stepped into the dining hall where he heard voices. It was an elaborate room with red carpet on the pure white marble floors. It had bright lights all around and colorful banners hung over the huge room. Everyone sat at a very long table with seats for at least 20 people. Everyone was on the sides and the seat at the head was empty waiting for Link. The king was almost never there so he always ate at the head of the table, even though the king wouldn't mind because it was his uncle.

"Hey! There he is, how ya feeling." Jonah asked.

"I'm still a little stiff, but I'll live." Link said. "Oh yeah Zel, sorry I took so long, a lot happened."

"It's ok… It's just, we could have used you here." Zelda sighed.

"Why, what are you talking about? What did I miss?" Link asked kind of confused with his wife's answer.

"Aaron, Lisa, why don't you go play for a while longer." Zelda instructed. After they left Zelda took a deep breath and started. "About three days before you arrived an enormous army of these gray creatures, Berserkers I think, invaded Hyrule. They swept through and destroyed almost everything. They also killed so many people, I was saved because of our soldiers who would and did sacrifice themselves for their princess. Oh Link." she said as she burst into tears. "It's your uncle, he didn't… he's been taken away by those Berserkers, I'm afraid of what they'll do to him."

"What! They got my uncle. Now they've gone way, way too far! I will get them and make them pay." Link said angrily. He got up and walked over to the balcony where he would always go to think about serious things. He looked out in awe and horror at the horrible landscape that stretched before him. The market was completely destroyed, and Hyrule field was packed with wolfos and stalfos, and Lon Lon Ranch was completely burned. Link also learned that most of Lake Hylia was turned into a stagnant swamp. Then he saw Death Mountain; there was a huge crater that was glowing hot red.

"There's even more bad news." Zelda said pessimistically. "It's Ganondorf; he's returned. He was the one leading the Berserkers."

"Link's eyes widened in horror. "I thought I killed him last time we faced him though." He protested.

"Well, he must have found the means to live on. Now he has an enormous army at his disposable."

"These creatures, you called them Berserkers right, it's Thanagog! He must have teamed up with Ganondorf. He will pay." Link promised. Zelda was confused about how he knew about them, but he said that he would explain after dinner. He looked hungrily at all the food laid before him. This was one thing he enjoyed about being royalty.

After they ate and got Jonah and Terry their own rooms Link and Zelda went to bed. After they went to bed Link told Zelda his whole story. She then understood why it took so long for him to come back to Hyrule.

Link regained his strength over the next couple of days. During which he began researching the Dark Triforce. There was little written in any of the old legends, but he was persistent. He knew he had to learn more about this new, powerful object. During this time resting he almost never left the castle library, only to eat of coarse. He learned the legend and realized that Thanagog would be looking for the last piece of his Triforce so he could free himself completely. He was also worried about Ganondorf and what role he had to play in this. For he had learned through his many adventures that nothing happened by chance.

He watched Jonah train with Terry and realized that he had become a very skilled swordsman in a very short time. He even learned to put his full power into charging his sword. Then he realized that he didn't have his sword. He felt very insecure without it, especially with the impending doom of the whole world. It would be the hardest quest Link had ever been on.

After about a week Link felt strong enough to get going again. In his studies he learned that there was a sword forged of pure lava in the deep pits of Death Mountain. He told Jonah about it and he agreed to stick with Link even though his country was free from Agahnim. He explained that even though his country was free, if the world came under Daagog's control that no one could be free. So without his sword Link gathered his largest quiver along with 99 arrows and a supply of green potions to recharge his magic.

The next day the two set out to Death Mountain. Link was mounted on his horse Epona while Jonah was lent one of the royal horses. After the long journey there they finally arrived at the foot of the great dormant volcano, though it didn't look dormant any more. It was unusually hot around it, and the crater was glowing bright orange. "I think we should hurry, it could erupt any time." Link warned. The two began the climb to the Goron city. They finally made it to the entrance, but Link told Jonah not to go in alone.

Link walked in first, explaining that he and the leader of the Goron were blood brothers. He walked in and began to get close to the city. He heard a deep voice, but not one that was familiar to him.

"Who are you? Why have you entered our secluded city?" the voice asked.

"My name is Link. I am blood brother to the great sage Darunia." Link cried out into the darkness. Then a rather large Goron made its way out of the shadows to greet them.

"Welcome brother Link." the Goron said. Then with a sad look on his face he told Link that Darunia had been sacrificed by the returned Ganondorf to awaken a beast in the bowels of the earth. Link looked down in sadness at the learning of his friends passing, but his mind immediately switched to the matter at hand.

"Master Goron." Link addressed formally. "We've heard of a legendary blade hidden deep within this mountain. Do you know of such a thing?" he questioned.

"First of all, don't tell me you forgot me already." the Goron said with a look of fake sadness in his black marble eyes. "Its me, Link, son of Darunia." Goron Link said.

Link was shocked at how much the baby Goron had grown in a few years. "Link, its good to see you again." Link said wrapping Goron Link in a hug. Then he got back to business. "So do you know of any blade? Is it in the Fire Temple?" Link asked again.

"I've heard of it, but it's not in the Fire Temple. It's a completely different route down the mountain." Goron Link explained. So after goodbyes and a promise to return Link and Jonah went back outside.

"There must be another hidden entrance." Link thought hard if he had missed a door in the Fire Temple all those years ago. He replayed the whole thing in his mind; no he went through every door. Jonah looked around and saw something that Link must have overlooked. There was a bolder about fifty feet up the mountain that had a strange symbol on it.

"Hey Link, what's that?" Jonah asked pointing at the symbol.

"I have no idea." Link said puzzled, he was sure that had never been there before. He thought for a minute, the symbol was different than any he'd ever seen. He tried firing his hook shot but it just bounced back. Jonah tried a charged slice at it, but this was unsuccessful as well. Then Link had an idea; he took an arrow out of his quiver. He chanted a short spell and the tip of the arrow froze over. He shot the symbol on the rock and the whole boulder froze.

"Jonah! Now charge up and shatter that rock!" Link instructed. Jonah did as he was told and plunged his sword into the boulder. It cracked down the middle then shattered into hundreds of sharp shards. Link deflected them with his shield, but Jonah got one in the gut. "Uhh, I got hit." Jonah said as he tried to remove the shard. Doing this made the wound bleed freely. Link rushed over he tore a piece of Jonah's cape and tied it around his waste in hopes of stopping the bleeding. He treated the wound the best he could then the two trudged into the small cave under the boulder. It was narrow and dark; it also stunk like rotting dirt and bodies. Many times they had to squeeze sideways through it. It was so dark that you couldn't see your hand right in front of your face.

After a couple of hours they came to a room that had strips of land between small pools of lava. There were also bones and skulls of men who dared adventure into the cavern. Every couple of minutes the lava would rise and the strips of land would sink into the orange liquid. Link waited until the land jutted out of the lava and jumped to the first, then the second, and the third, but the lava was coming up again and he still had two to go so he jumped to the next. Link knew he couldn't make the next one so he jumped as far as he could, just before he plunged into the lava he put his shield under his feet. As quick as he could he jumped off and barely grabbed onto the edge on the other side of the room. He scrambled onto the ledge as the lava grabbed at his feet. With a sigh of relief Link leaned against the wall.

Just as he leaned against it a hidden switch was triggered. A small explosion opened a hole in the roof of the cavern. Dozens of fiery bats (sorry I didn't know the names) came screeching out. Link quickly drew his bow and strung an arrow. He hit one after another each arrow hitting its intended target. Jonah hacked away at the ones who got too close to him. After a couple of minutes they had killed all of the bats. A small chest materialized next to Link who took the small silver key out and secured it on his belt.

Now it was Jonah's turn to cross the pit. He was a lot lighter and quicker and was able to make it across with no problem despite his wounded belly. Link, however, was now defenseless without a shield or sword.

"Jonah, you're going to have to lead the way. I only have my bow and arrows."

"Okay, just be careful" Jonah replied. So the two continued on into the darkness. Every now and then Link would see a torch and light it with a flame arrow. Revealing more skeletons and small monsters, which were easily vanquished.

The two then came to a door locked with a small key lock. Link unlocked it and they both entered. In this room the torches were already lit. As they entered the door behind them locked and six re-dead popped out of the ground with a petrifying scream. Link covered his ears to drown out the sound, and after they stopped Link immediately armed himself and lit up a light arrow. He aimed it directly at one of the re-dead's hearts. He let his arrow fly and it hit true. A gush of brown blood squirted out and the creature exploded into light.

Two of the horrible creatures ganged up on Jonah and were ready to unleash their attacks; one of them leapt at Jonah like a rabid dog but Jonah was too quick. He sidestepped the attack then cut off one of the creature's legs. It fell to the floor and shrieked in pain as a pool of blood built up around it. Jonah took advantage of this and stabbed the crippled creature through the back. Jonah had not forgotten about the other one though, and just as it attacked Jonah thrust his sword past his side and pierced the other re-dead's lung. It fell to the ground gasping for air, but soon suffocated.

Link took out another two with his arrows, but as he was turning around he felt a sharp pain on his skull. The last re-dead had bitten him and was sucking the life energy out of him. Link flailed around desperately trying to break free, but he began to get weaker. His head was dripping blood and he was loosing consciousness. Then it stopped, and a headless body sprawled down beside him. Link quickly tore the head that was still clutching to his skull off and crushed it underfoot. Jonah was standing over him with his hand stretched out to help him up. A large chest with white spikes on top appeared in the center of the room. Jonah opened it and removed its contents it was the large key.

Link drank some of the green potions he packed and then the two continued on. After another couple of agonizingly hot and smelly hours they made it to the final room. Half of it was covered with a deep pool of lava and the other half was hark rock. As they entered a huge creature made out of lava sprung up from the pool. It's legs stayed in the pool, but the rest roughly took on the shape of a human with unnaturally long lanky arms. Its head was covered with the stone mask of a cow skull. It was 20 feet tall and had a chain of red hot metal as a weapon. It had large plates of cooled magma as armor and had long spikes at the joints on its arms and knees.

It started out by swinging its chain around its head and then sending it crashing at Jonah. He dodged the attack and ran at the Kaarak, he jumped and sliced off the Kaarak's left arm, but when he turned around it had grown back. The Kaarak was enraged and out of a hole in its mask came a fountain of molten lava. It formed a circle on the ground around Jonah. Then it decided to mow him down with the chain. Jonah jumped over the attack and landed a safe distance away from the new pool of lava.

Link had time to think while the Kaarak was distracted and figured out a plan. It would require three steps. "Jonah! Do exactly what I tell you, I think I have a plan!" Link shouted. He aimed two ice arrows at the base of the creature's legs, and they momentarily froze.

"NOW! Attack its arm again!" Link ordered. Jonah did and this time it didn't grow back. Link figured that the legs were used to suck up an unlimited supply of lava, but if the supply was cut off the creature could not regenerate.

The creature howled in pain and was about to unleash another gush of lava, but as it opened its mouth wide Link shot into it and the creature's head froze. Jonah knew what to do, he charged up his sword and plunged it into the creature's stone head. It shattered like the boulder did earlier. This time Jonah dodged the shards, but Link wasn't so lucky. One shard grazed his shoulder, another sank into his leg, and the third injured his aiming hand.

Link cursed as blood oozed from the wounds. Then he noticed that the creature was still alive, but the mask was gone. Now his head was just a small dome of free-flowing lava.

Link once again tried to shoot the Kaarak's legs, but the agonizing pain of the shard deeply imbedded in his hand caused him to flinch. The arrow missed because of his injury. The Kaarak swung its chain and nailed Link and Jonah. The force threw them into the back wall of the cavern so hard that the wall cracked around where they hit. Jonah fell to his hands and knees and trembled from heat exhaustion and loss of breath as he tried to regain the air that had been forced out of his lungs. A large wound on his head bled freely and his left arm was hurting very badly. He looked over at Link who was passed out on the floor due to a large injury on his head.

The Kaarak lashed out with many vertical strikes, but Jonah managed to dodge them all. He picked up Link's bow and quiver and strung an arrow. He wasn't much of an archer, but he prayed that his arrows would hit. He recited the spell he heard Link repeat and his arrow froze. He aimed it at the creature's leg and fired, the arrow hit and its leg was frozen. Jonah did the same with the other leg. Then with the last of his strength he jumped as high as he could. He swung his sword and the creature's real head came tumbling and splashed onto the hard stone below. The creature plunged lifelessly back into the lava pit where he came from.

A small path then rose out of the lava to a door beyond. Jonah managed to wake Link up. Link was surprised to see that the Kaarak was no more and commended Jonah. He also told him that he wouldn't order him around any more, seeing that he was smart enough to handle things on his own. They made their way to the small room beyond.

Link stared in amazement at the sword. It was only about two inches wide, but at four feet long it was a very nice sword. It was perfectly strait except for the extremely sharp point at the end. It was glowing bright orange from the heat of the lava contained in the elaborate handle as well. There was also a hard stone sheath to put it away safely.

Link leaned in to claim the weapon, but stopped momentarily and backed away. "You know what. Jonah, you take the sword, after all it was you that defeated the Kaarak." Link said as he motioned for Jonah to get it. Jonah was shocked and thrilled at the offer and took the powerful weapon in his hand. He gave Link his old trusty sword even though it wasn't special.

Then they were magically warped to the entrance. When they looked back the crater had stopped growing and it was back to normal temperature in the surrounding area. Link then took a detour to visit the fairy fountain on the mountain. He returned with two fairies, one for him and the other for Jonah. The fairies were released and immediately worked at healing them.


	9. Dry as a Longing Heart

**Chapter IX**

**Dry As a Longing Heart**

Link and Jonah returned to Hyrule Castle to find that Terry had left to see to other important matters. Link greeted his family so happily and lovingly. Jonah began to feel very lonesome at that moment. He longed for a family to run to whether it be a family of his own, or even his parents. He made an effort to hide his discomfort as the family welcomed him too.

Link noticed something strange on Zelda's hand. As he examined it closer he saw that it was a ring. It had two thick bands and on the top was a large blue and green jewel embedded into the golden bands.

"Hey Zel, where'd you get that nice ring from." He said pointing at her hand.

"Oh this, well a couple of hours after you two left a young lady came by the castle. She gave the ring to one of the guards and told him to tell me a short message. She said that she had traveled from the desert to give this to two worthy warriors. She also said that the desert seemed to be churning and that she and her encampment needed help. Then the guards said she vanished in a cloud of sand." Zelda explained as she took the large ring off and handed it to Link. "And somehow I have the feeling that you two might be the ones she was talking about.

As he took hold of it a strait line appeared and divided the ring into two separate pieces. One had the green half of the jewel and the other had the blue half. Link had an idea what the mysterious girl meant, so he tossed the blue half to Jonah.

"Hold on to this, I have a feeling we'll need it later." Link said. "I have never been given anything that hasn't been important in the future."

"It's still pretty early don't you think. Maybe we still have time to get going to that desert." Jonah asked, hoping to get his mind off of his loneliness. He felt like his bad emotions and feelings became much stronger since he had arrived in this foreign country.

"Good idea, but even if we get there, where is her encampment? The desert is gigantic and from the sound of it, even more dangerous." Link said.

"You mean to tell me that there's no place we could start our search." Jonah said desperately.

"Well we could start at the Gerudo Fortress, but why are you so set on going?" Link asked.

"I don't know, I just have a feeling that we have to." Jonah said as he shrugged. Jonah knew deep inside that this was not as light as he made it seem. His warrior's instincts, as well as a strange, almost nauseating sensation he had felt in his stomach since he arrived in Hyrule, told him that things were far too grave for just a shrug.

So after the two replenished their supplies, and Link said goodbye to Zelda and his kids the two set off on yet another step of their long journey. Zelda always dreaded letting Link go off on his quests, but she knew that this one was just too dangerous. Besides, she had bigger responsibilities with Link's uncle absent. She had the entire kingdom to rule until he was returned, or so she hoped.

Link and Jonah had been traveling on the way to what was now called the Deserted Desert. Jonah had been unusually thoughtful and hardly spoke a word to Link. This began to bother Link.

"Hey man, what's on your mind?" Link asked curiously.

"Oh, it's nothing, just a weird feeling in the pit of my stomach. It's getting stronger as we get closer." Jonah finally explained.

"Wait, does it feel like a nausea in your stomach, but also a weird feeling in the back of your mind?" Link asked slowly.

"Yeah, how'd you know?" Jonah wondered.

"It's the same feeling I had in my stomach since I dreamt of Ganondorf more than ten years ago. The night my life as a warrior first started. After a while I guess I just grew calloused to it, like the rest of the people I suspect. It worries me though." Link explained with a scared look on his face.

"So do you think whatever evil is making my stomach turn is in the desert?" Jonah asked.

"Possibly." Link said as he looked to the terrain ahead. The vegetation began to become sparser. It began to get really hot and dry, and there was not a cloud in sight. Soon the two were wandering aimlessly through sand and wind. The air was so windy that they had to put cloth over their mouths and noses. Jonah followed Link and Epona through the desert and as he got closer the feelings of loneliness and rejection became very strong.

After about three hours of riding in silence, the two saw the towering Gerudo Fortress about a mile ahead.

"Jonah! I have to warn you about the Gerudo!" Link yelled through the storm. "They're all females and really hate all males! The only two they've been in contact with are me and Ganondorf, and needless to say that didn't work out! They're also very skilled warriors, they could easily take out ten trained warriors."

"Don't worry! I'll let you do the talking, since it's what you're best at." Jonah scowled.

"Hey, what got into you!" Link retorted with a weird glance at Jonah.

"Sorry, I'm not myself." Jonah apologized. Just as he finished a spear came zooming out of the sky and landed between their horses. This spooked them, making them rear up. Link landed ungracefully in the sand, but Jonah easily jumped off and landed in a crouch position by the horse.

"Who braves the desert to come to this place!" a feminine voice called out. In about half a minute there were seven Gerudo surrounding Link and Jonah with their scimitars ready. Jonah drew his sword, only to have it knocked away before he could even bring it up to battle position.

"How dare two males attack us!" one of the tallest women said with a hint of insult in her voice.

"Stand down! Let me get through!" shouted one more voice. The circle around them split as the apparent leader of them entered. She was rather tall and had a very beautiful body. Her long red-brown hair fell loosely to the back of her knees. She had a pear of wave blades, blades that curve down along the bottom of the forearm, made of an almost blue metal that matched her dark blue pants and purple top.

"My name is Katrina, I am the leader of the Gerudo here at the fortress. Who are you and what is your purpose?" she demanded.

Link moved forward a little and cleared his throat. "My name is Link and this is Jonah. We are here because we have reason to believe that there is trouble in an encampment in the desert and we were asked to help."

Katrina looked at them closely for several minutes trying to find out if they were lying. "What did you say your name was?" she asked.

"Link, why?" he said.

"Link, the Hero of Time!" she said excitedly. "Ok if it is you then prove it." Katrina demanded. So Link slowly took the gauntlet off his right hand. There, under it, was a glowing symbol of the Triforce of Courage.

"It is you, your timing is so perfect. You are welcome to come in. Tomorrow morning I will explain our situation, but you two must rest. You need your energy in the desert." she offered. The rest of the Gerudo were shocked that there would be two males in their fortress, but they knew that their leader was wise and they trusted her judgment.

After they were shown to a room in the fortress three Gerudo stood guard in front of their door, just in case. Their room was rather large with a fireplace in the far wall and a bookshelf surrounding it. The flames caused an eerie orange glow through the room.

"I wonder why the Gerudo are treating us so well. Katrina said that our timing was perfect. I don't know what she meant, but I guess we'll find out tomorrow." Link thought out loud. Jonah didn't respond, instead he just slumped onto one of the beds and lay there staring at the roof.

Link shrugged it off and went to bathe. A chill ran through his body as he saw all the scars. He especially noticed one that ran from his upper left chest to the bottom of his abs. It was thick and still a little raw. The hot water helped him sort out his thoughts and sooth his body. He leaned back in the water and almost fell asleep. When he was finally done he donned some pants that the Gerudo had left for them. Then he went to his bed and fell asleep in an instant.

The next morning they were woken up by a gentle knock on the door. Jonah grumbled when he realized that Link wasn't going to get it. He staggered over to the door and quietly opened it so he could see who was standing in the way. It took a minute for his eyes to adjust to the torch that had been abruptly lifted to his face.

In front of him was a young Gerudo female. She could not have been older than eighteen. She was five feet five inches, which was a little short for Gerudo standards, as most were at least five-ten. She was also more petite and did not have such a distinguishing body. She had amber hair that ran in a tight ponytail down to her lower back. The part that most attracted attention to her, however, was her eyes. They were large and compassionate, filled with love and joy, but at the same time heartache and pain. They were like a pool of unsorted emotions. They were a dark brown color that reminded Jonah of the autumn in Pandera.

"Hello, my name is Kirra, I am to be your servant as well as your guide during your stay here." She said in a voice so angelic that Jonah was at a loss for words. Seeing this, she gave a small smile and to her surprise her cheeks reddened. "Katrina seeks an audience with you after you eat."

"Oh, I'll wake Link right away. By the way my name's Jonah. See you soon I guess." Jonah said nervously, he had never been nervous to talk to anyone before. He went inside and shook Link to wake him.

"Alright I'm up!" Link shouted through his blankets. Jonah told him that Katrina wanted to speak with them, so the two got ready and ate quickly. After they finished eating Kirra escorted them to Katrina's audience chamber.

She was sitting on a large throne decorated with slivers of gold and silver. There were three other Gerudo seated on each side of her. "Ah, Link, welcome to the Gerudo Palace throne room." Katrina said proudly. " I trust my little sister Kirra has made sure to treat you well."

"Yes, your highness." Link said respectfully as he bowed on one knee to her. Jonah followed suit and once pleasantries were exchanged among the other elders they got down to business.

"Link, it was my sister who went to Princess Zelda and told her about our perils. As you may know, a powerful evil has invaded Hyrule. Since its arrival here our desert has been acting strangely. There have been enormous desert storms and at times it seems as if the whole desert actually shifts under our feet."

"Yes. I believe that Kirra did tell Zelda about the desert." Link said as Jonah listened intently.

"That ,however, is not the worst of our problems. Many a Gerudo have been vanishing in the encampments that are scattered around the Fortress. One of whom is Nabooru." As Katrina said that name her eyes glossed over with tears.

"What! Nabooru has gone missing!" Link exclaimed in shock.

"Aye, we elders believe that this is the reason for our problems." Said one of the elders.

"That brings us to the reason that you are here." Katrina said. "There is an ancient Gerudo prophecy that foretells these present events. It reads like this:

"When sand becomes sea,

And times turn dark.

Among the peasants shall arise,

Two that become one"

"One shall wield Courage,

The other shall have courage."

"They shall work together with magic,

And Tolrec shall rise again."

"Do you see the connection?" Katrina asked expectantly.

"No, only that if what you say is happening, then it could be that the land becomes sea. Other than that, I don't have a clue." Link said.

"I think I figured another part out." Jonah offered thoughtfully. "I think that Link and I are the two that become one. It fits because we were both born peasants. Link wields the Triforce of Courage and I have shown courage in our travels. But that's all I have."

"Great! You both got those parts correct. Now let me explain the rest. The ring that was given to Zelda is called the Ring of Binding. It has the power to join two people into one, more powerful being. Also, you two must use magic to defeat the evil. Now, Tolrec means rising sun in Gerudo tongue. So when you defeat evil, the sun will rise upon the land again and we will be freed from danger." Katrina explained.

"So how are we supposed to defeat this evil? It seems impossible. No mortal man can defeat a demigod possessed by a dark god, holding the Sword of Ultimate Warrior, with three pieces of the dark Triforce." Link pronounced.

"That is why we have a gift for the hero who wields courage." Kirra said with an excited smile. "You!'" she ordered. "Go get the sacred treasure." Two of the servants quickly bowed and hurried out of the door. About ten minutes later they came in carrying something covered by a scarlet cloth.

"Hero of Time, may we Gerudo present you with something that will prove helpful in the future. Here is our most valued treasure, the Crystal Blade!" she said excitedly. Link walked reverently over to in and slowly uncovered the blade. It was magnificent. It was four feet long and the blade was about three inches thick, before pointing into a deadly tip. The long, perfectly cut, blade was made of the purest diamond. It was completely flawless and so clear that if no reflection fell upon it, it would look invisible. The gold handle was decorated with a single ruby about the size of a small egg, and the hand-and-a-half grip was wrapped in a crimson cloth.

"Your highness… It's breathtaking." Link said in amazement.

"Yes, this blade took many months to forge. Aside from its external beauty it has powers that rival the Sword of Bog'thuule. We spent weeks casting spells of power and magic upon it. Link, take the hilt of your new weapon." Katrina said with a reverence of her own, partly for Link but mostly for the blade.

As Link took hold of it, he felt a surge of power and strength course through his body. It was so powerful that it made him lose consciousness. The time he spent that way was filled with physical strain as well as an exhilarating feeling of freedom. A barrage of thoughts, dreams, and premonitions flooded into his mind. His body ached and felt like it was being torn apart. But as quickly as it started, it ceased. Finally the trauma receded and he slowly regained his consciousness. He found himself lying in his bed, so he figured he'd been out for a while.

"Hey… Jonah, what happened. Last thing I remember was taking the new sword?" Link asked in a weak voice. He looked over and saw Jonah was too busy in conversation with Kirra to answer. So he got up and headed over to wash his face. Upon looking in the mirror he gave a shout of surprise and shock.

Staring him in the face was a different person than the last time he remembered. His face was slightly broader and his hair had grown out over an inch. His body was also much more muscular than before. His ears had grown over four inches and were more slanted back. Now his eyes were filled with an unnatural calm and the wisdom of the wisest elder. He also saw something that relieved him. All but one of the scars on his body were completely gone. Only the thick one that ran down his chest remained.

"Hey! What happened to me?" Link yelled as Jonah finally came over. So Jonah explained that when Link took hold of his Crystal Blade, he fell and over a course of three days his body had undergone a massive transformation.

Some time later Katrina asked for their presence in the training grounds behind the fortress. As they arrived they saw many Gerudo sparring, some practicing archery, and even some working simple spells.

"Ah Link, I'm glad to see you're finally awake. As you can tell you've been changed. It was an unexpected, but possibly beneficial to our cause. Now, the reason you are here is to see what you can really do now." Katrina said, seeing he was finally awake. "You will challenge my sister in a one-on-one duel. This will be purely to test your skills, so give it your all."

Link simply nodded and walked to one end of the large circle. Once then he took a moment to marvel at his new weapon. He looked up when he saw Kirra walk into the ring and begin stretching. She even went as far as doing several back flips in a row.

"Before we begin, there's something I have to explain." Kirra said as she took her place in the sparring range. "I am the most powerful mage of the Gerudo, and I'm not going to go easy on you."

"I don't want you to. If we're to defeat Daagog then I'm going to need to know what I can do." Link said with a determined tone. He drew his new blade. It was heavier than his Master Sword and it took him a minute to get used to the difference. Soon he was ready to battle.

Kirra started things off by forming two small fireballs in her hands and blasting them at Link. To Link it was as if he could almost sense it and his reaction time quickened. As the fire came hurling at him he actually bent backwards under them. Then he attacked by trying to come down from on top. He actually jumped clear over her without even trying. He landed and swirled around in time to block another fireball.

He rushed at her faster than he ever thought possible and attacked. Kirra put up a strong barrier to try block. The sword hit the barrier so hard that it sent a gale of wind from the impact point. Then he spun and with the extra momentum shattered the barrier. Kirra stumbled back as if she'd been struck herself.

"Very impressive indeed, but try stopping this!" she shouted as she started glowing a bright orange aura. Then she drew two wave blades, much like her sister's. The two began a hand-to-hand duel with neither side relenting at all. The force at which they struck was incredible it sent sparks and winds everywhere. Finally Link felt that he'd had enough after half an hour of being at a standstill. So he charged his sword up. As he did it began to glow green, but it emitted from the inside of the crystal blade. Link felt his power rushing out of him quickly so he stopped charging. His sword was shining green and the energy coursing through it was actually visible.

"Whoa, that drained a lot more of my power than my other sword would." Link said as he recovered and brought his sword back into battle position. Then with all his strength he leapt at Kirra. The resulting shockwave sent everyone on and around the sparring range, Link included, flying back. Link quickly recovered, springing to his feet with a new vigilance never before experienced. He did a complicated maneuver and managed to disarm Kirra, then he brought his blade a quarter inch from her throat, and the battle was over.

"Well, you have indeed grown more powerful with your new transformation. Now describe how you felt." Katrina complemented.

"It was incredible! I could almost sense what Kirra would do before she did it. Then when she did it, I found that it was much easier to dodge and block. All of my senses were also heightened. I could hear your conversations even in the heat of battle, I could see much more clearly and am able to focus my attention on something and still keep tract of other things. I can feel the sword in my grasp moving to my every command. I also felt a lot more physical strength and endurance. I felt like I could take on anything!" Link explained.

"Great, this has indeed turned out in our favor. With these new abilities you may be able to contend with Daagog." One of the younger elders said.

"That may be, but no man, no matter how powerful can stop a desert from churning on his own. We still have a problem that requires immediate attention." Katrina said with a sudden urgency in her voice.

"She's right Link, we need to find a way to stop this. I know it has something to do with Daagog, I can feel it in my gut." Jonah said half-heartedly.

"Ok. Katrina, how do you expect us to stop this?" Link asked.

"Well the legend says that you need magic…"

"But none of us know that much, we cant possibly cast a spell powerful enough to stop a while desert storm." Jonah interrupted.

"No, but something just occurred to me." Link said thoughtfully. "Kirra can. She said she was the most powerful spell caster among all the Gerudo. She could be the one that the prophecy speaks of. She could be the magic that combines with our courage."

"You're right!" Kirra exclaimed. "My magic combined with the two of you could be enough to stop this."

"Very well then, I shall prepare you for your journey." Katrina said with a curt nod.

The rest of that day was spent busily making plans about how to go into the desert. As well as loading up on supplies. Among them were many extra flasks. When the day was over the two went back to their room to eat. On their way Jonah had a look as if he wanted to tell Link something, but kept holding it back.

Link could see this. "What is it Jonah? Did you want to tell me something?" he asked knowingly.

"Well… it's about Kirra." Jonah started.

"What? You don't think she's fit for this challenge?" Link asked with a bit of mock humor. "She almost beat me, even in this new form."

"No. It's not that. Don't you think she's great? Aside from her fighting ability, I mean. You know, as a person." Jonah said. It seemed as if he was trying to get Link's approval.

Link caught on and with a small smile he said. "Yes, she has a certain niceness about her. She's not as cruel as the other Gerudo."

"Link… I think I'm in love with her." Jonah admitted quietly.

Link gave a small laugh, in a mocking tone. Then he became a little more serious. "Jonah, if you really feel this way it's now your job to protect her in the desert. She is a great girl, if you truly love her you'll give anything for her. And if you love her you have to let it show."

"Yeah, but what about their tradition. They're not to have contact with other males except the one that comes every hundred years." Jonah complained.

"If she loves you and you love her no law will be able to keep you apart." Link said wisely. It seemed to Jonah that since his transformation Link had become much wiser. It also looked like he was hiding something important from them. Whether for their safety, or his own fear, Jonah could not tell.

That night was a restless one for Link. The times that he did fall asleep he was subjected to dreams and images. His mind would finally get so cluttered that he would wake up, only to have the cycle repeat itself again. The morning came at last, and with it the thought of the challenge ahead of them.

The plan was to head over to an area about fifty miles past the Desert Colossus, to where the whole problem originated. That meant a five day journey through the hottest, driest area of Hyrule. On top of that there was the fact that the desert was now a dangerous ocean of sand. Gigantic sandstorms swept over the landscape, there were also large sand pits that would bury anything unfortunate enough to be caught in their grip.

Once they had eaten a morning meal they set off. Link on Epona, Jonah on a dark brown horse named Switfthoof, and Kirra on Sunfire, a tan colored horse. As they passed the other Gerudo Jonah caught their glances of disapproval that their leader's sister would be going off to battle with two men, even if one was Link. Once they were out of view of the village they set their sights strait ahead. Kirra took a slight lead, as she knew the way better that either Link or Jonah.

Jonah rode up to meet her and just sat, glancing over at her every couple of seconds. She saw this and in spite of the flutter in her stomach managed to ask a question to her admirer.

"So, where are you from? You're not any of the races here in Hyrule."

"Oh no. My homeland is called Pandera. It is populated with humans. It is a country on the other side of the Great Continent." Jonah explained.

"Hm, what is it like over there?" she continued.

"Well, it's an ocean less country. It has many mountains and is a perfect climate." Jonah said as he thought about his home country.

"Sounds like a great place to grow up." She said ignorantly.

"Actually it was a horrible place. Its history is riddled with countless civil wars and the whole country is always prepared for an attack. The cities are well guarded day and night, and even the smallest villages are walled. I grew up in a particularly bad village." Jonah said bitterly.

"Oh, I'm so sorry. I had no idea." Kirra said with an apologetic look.

"Don't be. There's no way you could have known." He said understandingly.

The three continued in silence for about an hour admiring the landscape. In the distance they could see what looked like a large thunderhead rolling on the ground. It was actually a sand storm. Link eyed it wearily.

"Don't worry the wind isn't blowing this direction we'll be fine." Kirra assured as she caught Link's glance. The sun was now setting on the desert. It lit up the sand like a fire, and the few clouds that there were turned a beautiful hue of purple lined by a fiery yellow.

The three agreed that it was about time to start setting up camp. As they all busied themselves with different tasks Jonah couldn't help but feel a warm feeling of calm run over him. He had a great friend and mentor in Link, as well as a new feeling of love toward Kirra. The thought stuck with him as they all sat around the fire. It had cooled off considerably from the heat of the day.

The night again riddled Links mind with thoughts and dreams. This time, however, he seemed to understand them in a strange way. His conscious mind couldn't, but his subconscious absorbed everything. It was as if something or someone was trying to give him answers to questions that had yet to arise.

The morning came and the three companions ate a quick breakfast and packed up camp. This day seemed even hotter than the day before had been. Kirra put on a turban to keep from getting burned by the scorching sun. Link and Jonah had not thought that through well enough and had to do without protection. The morning had gone by in a rather monotonous pace, and by the time noon rolled around the three were miserable.

"Oh this heat. I'll be cooked if we don't find shade soon." Jonah complained weakly.

"Don't worry, there's a rocky pass up ahead. It will shield us from most of the sun." Katrina reassured. About half an hour later two large plateaus appeared over the horizon. In between them was a pass about a quarter mile wide.

"If we stay against one of the walls we'll be in the shade." Kirra said. She was right, when the companions got there the whole pass was shaded from the blistering sun. Kirra thought it would be wiser to wait for the evenings and mornings to travel. So they all stopped there to wait for the evening.


	10. Berserker's Interlude

**A/N: IMPORTANT! **

**Due to the fact that my story has only four reviews, I am for a time taking a break from working on this one. I am beginning on plans for another story. If you wish me to continue this sorry, please review. **

**Also I am going to post the chapters that I was waiting to, so you'll get as far into the story as I have currently written.**

**So, for now, I bid you fare-well. I will continue if I get three more reviews, but if not, it may be a while before you see anything from me. Thanks to _Tristan Lavantyr _for your two kind words, they truly were appreciated. Thanks to _Mehian_ also for choosing my title. So fare-well and good luck fellow writers… for now anyway.**


	11. Mid Day Sunrise

**Chapter XI**

**Mid-day Sunrise**

"Tomorrow we'll be passing the Desert Colossus, then it'll only be about half a days journey to get to where we need to be" Kirra explained to the weary warriors. As they set up camp Jonah kept seeing something out of the corner of his eye, but when he looked it would vanish. He quickly put it out of his mind as dinner was served and Kirra invited him over to talk.

After dinner, as they were getting ready for bed, Jonah saw a small rock tumble down the wall of the canyon. He told Link what he'd been seeing and Link volunteered to keep watch until it was time to leave. So he found a large rock to sit on.

As he sat there the hours passed and he fell into a trance caused by his sword. He could sense everything around him, from the lizards under the surface of the sand, to a weird disturbance behind him. He immediately came to his senses. Without even looking, Link swung his sword in an arc behind him, and when he heard a wince he turned. There, behind him with a bleeding cheek, stood a pale looking older man. He looked like he was in his fifties with a small scraggly beard and plain brown eyes. He was rather thin and tall.

"What's the matter with you? You trying to kill me?" the man said in a really shrill, high-pitched voice.

"That depends on you, sir." Link said forcefully. "If you don't want trouble, then you're perfectly safe here."

"The last thing I want is trouble. I just need some water. Is that too much to ask for? By the way, the name's Daniel" he said.

"Well, here you go, some fresh cold water." Link said kindly as he handed the man a flask. He drank gratefully and once he was satisfied he sat back by the fire and made himself at home.

"So why are you all the way out here in the desert? You don't look Gerudo, so why even bother coming here?" Link questioned.

"Well, I'm a professor doing research in this here desert. Just bad timing I guess, with all the storms an all." the eccentric old man explained. "I've been expelled from the Science Academy for my theory that something lies in the desert. Something evil, yearning to get free and cause a lot of trouble."

"What makes you think that?" Link asked curiously. He knew that there was something was wrong and maybe this old man's theory could help them out. Daniel quickly told them that he had set up his own research center. So Link thought it was important enough to wake the others.

As soon as Link introduced them all, they got ready to leave. It turned out that Daniel's so called research center was just a little hut towards the end of the pass. The place was cluttered with hundreds of books and maps.

"Welcome. Sit here while I gather some things." Daniel said as he went about looking for certain books. After a couple of minutes he returned with a map and a large book.

"This is the Chozoa, the ancient Gerudo's holy book." He said as he opened it slowly. He pointed to a particular page and read the ancient language. Then he translated it into Hylian.

"It reads. At the end of the second age of Hyrule a great shadow shall descend upon the land. Out of a great flat shall come the Heart of Shadows. It shall reign darkness upon the land for millennia. However in the same time a group of heroes shall arise. They shall work as one to vanquish it."

"So are we that group?" Jonah asked.

"I don't know, but it's possible. Earlier in the book it speaks of one with a white blade, who wields the power of Courage." he said.

"Well, I have the Crystal Blade, and the mark of courage on my hand.' Link said hopefully.

"Then I can be of help." Daniel said excitedly. He pointed to an area on the map. "This is where you need to go, and I know an easy way to get there."

So Link and his team followed Daniel outside to the top of the plateau. Out of his brown robe, Daniel pulled out a trumpet carved from what looked like the tusk of a dodongo. The horn made a low bellowing sound as his breath passed through its chamber. For a minute nothing happened, until in the distance three small shadows began to advance toward them. When they came closer their amazing features could be distinguished. They were like falcons with a few major differences. First of all, they had a wingspan of about fifteen feet. They also had four powerful looking legs, two rear legs like a tiger's and two front like a birds

"Behold! The gryphons!" Daniel exclaimed. "I discovered them while traveling in another land. I managed to get three to come with me. They are suitable for carrying human weight and can easily fly over three times faster than a horse. They could easily get you to your destination by tomorrow afternoon."

"What about Epona and the other horses?" Link asked concerned.

"Leave them with me. I'll be sure to take great care of them all." the old professor answered.

With a sense of urgency in his voice Jonah said. "Link, Kirra, we have to go now. If we don't, I fear that it will be too late, for everyone. The feeling has been growing steadily stronger, now it's driving me crazy." So after packing their bags onto the muscular gryphons, they prepared to depart. As Link sat on the dip in its shoulder the creature let out a loud shriek. Then it was off. Before Link could brace himself he was a hundred feet into the air. Jonah and Kirra soon joined him in the air.

"Whoa, this is great!" Kirra shouted ecstatically. The trio waved their good-byes to Daniel. Soon they were speeding through the skies on their new mounts. The speed that they were traveling made a constant wind sweep past them, so they stayed cool even through the heat of the day. By nightfall they had traveled over three times the distance that they could have on horseback. They were now only about two hours from their destination, but Link knew that they would need all their full strength for what lied ahead.

The three set up camp and after eating a quick meal, went to bed. The night was bitterly cold and restless in spite of the weariness of the group. Finally, at about midnight they finally found their way to sleep. The camp was quiet until Jonah woke up in the early morning. He was violently ill and was doubled over in pain from his stomach. Kirra and Link rushed over to his tent immediately as they heard his groaning. Link helped walk him over to the fire to warm him up. As they were walking Jonah suddenly fell to his knees and vomited his stomach out.

"Link, I'm so sick. I can't ride again." Jonah said out of breath.

"Yes you can!" Link commanded with a concerned look on his face. "You've been through much worse than this! Jonah get up now!"

"No Link… it's different. The evil is trying to take my soul. I'm being ripped apart from the seams." Jonah whispered weakly.

"Link, there is one thing that could save him, the Ring of Binding. You can use it to fuse yourselves onto one being for a while. He can use your strength as a crutch to save his own." Kirra explained.

"I'm willing to do that to save him." Link said without second thought.

"There's only one thing… You'll immediately know every detail of the other person's life, from feelings to memories and even dreams." Kirra warned.

"I'm still going to do it… that is if Jonah doesn't mind." Link said as he looked at this new best friend. Jonah gave a weak nod in agreement. Seeing this Kirra told Link how to merge. They were to touch the rings together and recite a simple incantation.

So in unison they touched their rings and recited these simple words. "Ring of Binding, let two become one. Meld our spirits for the sake of the just and let our light prevail." As they recited this, the ring began to radiate with a white light until it enveloped them both. When the blinding light receded there stood only one single being.

He was a shocking combination of both Link and Jonah. He kept most of Link's physical features including the new body that resulted from his transformation. There were only a couple of differences. Link's hair had turned dark brown like Jonah's and the red-brown eyes that Jonah had. The biggest difference was on the inside though. For the instant they combined Link was flooded with all of Jonah's thoughts, feelings, and memories. He immediately felt an overwhelming sorrow as Jonah's emotions ran through him. He could remember how Jonah's parents were ruthlessly slaughtered and how hard his life at the academy was. Then he felt the single good emotion that Jonah held; his love for Kirra. He could feel that it was the only thing Jonah had to hold onto.

Link slowly stood; his head still spinning with everything from Jonah. "I really think we should go right now." He said in a voice that was a strange combination of both warriors' own voices. "Jonah was right, if we don't do something soon, the world will fall into chaos."

"Okay, it should only take a couple of hours to reach our destination." Kirra explained. Her voice was less cheery than usual now that Jonah himself was no longer physically there. It was more like duty now, less enjoyable. She hadn't noticed it before, but Jonah was the real reason she decided to go on this quest. Now that he was not there it just wasn't the same.

So after they finished packing up the camp they put all the equipment on one of the gryphons to make their own load lighter. Then they mounted and were off. Kirra was right, about two hours later the two saw a gigantic whirlpool of sand. It was at least one mile across and was raging at speeds faster than the sandstorms in the desert. However, it was something else that caught Link's attention. He saw two figures on the far side of the whirlpool. When he could finally make out their identities his face went white with horror. It was Ganondorf and Thanagog.

"Kirra! Land immediately! We could be in big trouble!" Link shouted as he sent his gryphon into a nosedive. Kirra followed suit and they both ran to the edge of the pool. Link unsheathed his weapon feeling a renewed vigor. Ganondorf was the first to notice them.

"Boss! We've got company." He said with an evil grin. Thanagog looked up and when he did Link noticed how much he had changed. His platinum hair had grown to his waist. He had actually sprouted two huge, dark, dragon-like wings. His skin had turned an unnaturally dark color, as if he had been dropped in a vat of black dye. His horns now protruded from Thanatos' skull and were sharpened to a deadly spike.

"Ahh Link, you've changed a little from when I last devastated you." Thanagog said noticing Link's new body; from the transformation and from his combining with Jonah.

"I could say the same of you!" Link shouted back.

"You're lucky, you've made it just in time for the show of the century. You see, I have finally discovered the location of the fourth piece of the Dark Triforce, the Triforce of Domination!" Thanagog shouted in a low evil voice. "Now prepare yourself to see the destruction of the great nation of Hyrule, and soon the entire universe!" He shouted with a bout of maniacal laughter. "Soon, you shall see my true, whole power unleashed!"

Then as if hearing him, something began to ascend from the center of the enormous cyclone of sand. First a great feathered head rose, with long squinted eyes that glowed deep blue. Then the top of the wings came out; its feathers a radiant orange. Then its glorious chest revealed itself. It was like looking into the sun; the light that shone was like an unquenchable fire. Its long tail was the last thing to emerge from the sand. The tail itself was over three hundred feet long and had seven feathers, each a different color. When it had fully emerged it let out an ear splitting screech, like an eagle's. The flames that had been contained in its chest now spread over its entire body, wreathing its five hundred foot wingspan in a magnificent aura of fire.

"Behold! Tolrec has risen! And with it my key to invincibility and immortality!" Thanagog shouted at the top of his lungs. It was then that Link noticed something in the gigantic phoenix's talon. A small triangle that literally canceled out all light that passed over it. It was like a black hole; sucking all light into its never ceasing vortex.

"It's the Triforce of Domination." Link said through his mouth that had dropped open upon seeing Tolrec. He realized that Tolrec had been the symbol of the royal family, with the dark Triforce in its talon.


	12. Passing of a War Lord

**Chapter XII**

**Death of a War-Lord**

Thanagog immediately flew at the Triforce in a vain attempt to take it. Tolrec sensed him and flew up at an incredible speed leaving a stream of scalding hot air behind it. Daagog followed it with an unnatural speed. Link cursed, and quickly mounted his Gryphon to follow his foe. When he was in firing range he pulled out his bow. He charged up a light arrow and fired it at Thanagog. The arrow embedded itself in Thanagog's thigh. He let out a bellow of pain, and turned to face his foe.

Thanagog summoned his almighty sword, which now seemed to coarse with dark energy. He flew strait at Link with an unquenchable rage. He swung down at Link, but was surprised when his blow was blocked. It was hard for Link to fight from on top of his gryphon, so he mainly tried to block the vicious blows directed at killing him.

"Link! I can cast a spell that can let you fly for a while, just hold still for a second!" Kirra yelled from behind him. She began to glow orange then she recited a long spell and directed it toward Link. The spell hit him and two eagle-like wings sprouted from his back.

Link immediately jumped off his gryphon and began to duel his foe in mid-air. They struck each other with such strength that if those would have been ordinary swords, they would have shattered into hundreds of pieces. Both contenders had grown significantly stronger since the last time they battled. One of Thanagog's blows sliced Link down his thigh sending a jolt of pain up his spine. Link hit Thanagog a couple of times, each would have been enough to sever the limb, if these would have been ordinary people.

"You've grown quite strong in such a short time, and I see you've got yourself a new blade for me to contend with." Thanagog said in a momentary pause from the battle. They dueled for around an hour; neither one gaining the advantage. Link knew that he couldn't keep this up much longer, so he decided to end it soon. He charged up his Crystal Blade, careful not to overdo it like he had before. Once again his sword began to radiate green light from the inside out.

"Nice trick, now here's mine!" Thanagog said with an evil glint in his eyes. Then he yelled at the top of his lungs and his sword exploded with energy that took the form of black flame, wrapping itself around the platinum blade. Thanagog's eyes turned that unnatural white. He unleashed a two handed downward blow at Link's head. Link used all his stored energy to block the blow. The power still sent him careening into the sand below. He landed with a huge thud, as he felt his shoulder crack in two. He screamed in pain as his foe swooped down to finish off his prey.

Thanagog landed over Link. One leg on each side of him. He raised his almighty sword, ready to cleave his foe to pieces. Then something unexpected happened, something that not even Thanagog could have planned. His body completely froze up, his sword mere inches from Link's chest. From deep within the corners of his mind came a familiar spirit. Thanatos had regained partial control of himself.

_It's over demon, I will give Link the time he needs to stop you! _Thanatos thought to Daagog.

_**Don't be a fool! You'll lose your own body if he kills us! **_Daagog responded with a little fear in his voice.

_This is not having my own body. It's giving you a place to reside while you fulfill your evil plot._

_**Don't play this goody-goody act with me! You were after the same exact thing as me.**_

_Yes, but now I realize how wrong that was, and I am going to put an end to this whole thing right now!_

"Link… get the Triforce now… keep me away from it!" Thanatos screamed.

**_You fool, you die NOW!_** Daagog screamed as he obliterated what was left of Thanatos' spirit. With a painful cry the former warlord vanished from existence. He was ready though; in his eyes he had done his part for good in stopping Daagog from succeeding, maybe too late, but he did it none the less. So he went with no remorse and peace in his heart. He truly died a hero, at least in some peoples eyes.

Link used this pause to his advantage. He charged his sword and struck Thanagog in the gut, skewering his insides. Thanagog cried out in pain, but as Link pulled the blade out the wound healed completely. With a burst of willpower Daagog broke through his paralysis, but Link was already gone.

Link took advantage of the situation and ran for it, he was in no way a coward, he just knew when he was at a disadvantage. He went back to Kirra and mounted his gryphon to relieve her of the strain of maintaining the flying spell. He took off after Tolrec as fast as his powerful gryphon could fly. Being rather light allowed him to gain considerable ground. Soon he could see the magnificent bird ahead of them, it was completely motionless. Link could tell it was still alive, just unable to move. There was also a small dark figure grinning widely with success. It was Ganondorf, Link had completely forgotten about him during his fight with Thanagog. He cursed himself for being so forgetful.

While Link and Thanagog had been dueling Ganondorf had taken the last remaining gryphon and pursued Tolrec. He eventually caught up with the legendary bird. He tried reaching for the Triforce, but was met with a wall of flames erected by Tolrec. He decided on a different tactic, he would kill Tolrec.

He began charging dark balls of energy and throwing them at Tolrec. Whenever one would get close it would dissipate into a flurry of embers. The Gerudo king began to become infuriated, no matter how hard he tried nothing he did would hurt the phoenix. He tried energy spells, sleeper spells, even control spells, but Tolrec remained unphased. Then he remembered a spell that he had learned while exiled in the Sacred Realm; a restraint spell strong enough to stop a charging herd of King Dodongo.

Ganondorf recited a long, complex sentence in some extinct language and a blood-red aura surrounded him. He cast his arms forward and the beam struck Tolrec in the chest. Tolrec fought with all his strength but eventually succumbed to the spell and halted in midair. The phoenix roared in fury sending a blast of heat from its straining wings. Ganondorf wasted no time in swooping in and with a greedy grin on his face taking the dark Triforce into his grasp. At first a burst of pain exploded in his right hand. He howled in pain, and as he was screaming a golden light escaped his gaping mouth. It swirled around his head a couple of times and then flew in Link's direction. It struck him in the chest. Link expected some pain or something to happen, but nothing did so he returned his attention to Ganondorf.

An evil like no other surged into his body immediately finding its way into Ganondorf's black heart. The few thin strands that clung to his sanity were snapped at that moment and Ganondorf truly became a monster. His features changed, much like Link's. He became even more evil looking, if that were possible. He grew two short fangs from his upper mouth and his eyes became even more evil, his irises shrunk to only two little amber dots in the white of his eyes. Out of his forehead grew a single six-inch horn. With a laugh evil enough to make even Thanatos' spine tingle Ganondorf turned to Link, noticing that he was being followed. "Link I'm coming for you, not now, but soon." he threatened evilly. Then he flew off on his gryphon.

Link suddenly felt a really sharp pain in his chest. He thought it was a result of the light that Ganondnorf shot at him. He fell to his knees in excruciating pain. A light enveloped them and when it died down there laid two figures, Jonah and Link.

"Ohh…" Jonah groaned as he stood. "Link, thanks for giving me that extra power boost, without it I might have died."

"Hey what are friends for" Link said modestly. Then Kirra did something that even shocked her a little. She ran up and gave Jonah a huge hug, squeezing the air out of him. He looked at Link in shock, but Link simply nodded. So he hugged her back. She fit perfectly in his strong arms. He wished this moment could have lasted forever, but like all things, they must come to an end.

The three of them set up camp with a feeling of failure on their hearts. They lost out on stopping this new evil, but at least Daagog didn't get it. The next morning they set off on the two remaining gryphon, Link rode one and Jonah and Kirra rode on the other. During the flight Jonah's right hand kept itching, so he finally removed his leather glove. To his surprise he had a glowing triangle with the outline of the Triforce on the top of his hand. The top triangle was glowing and itching like crazy.

"Hey Link, what's this! Why do I have a Triforce now too!" Jonah shouted over to Link, who was a little ways ahead of them.

"What do you mean?" Link asked with curiosity as he slowed down so he could talk easier. Jonah showed Link the back of his hand. A look of shock appeared on his face as he quickly put the puzzle together in his mind. "When Ganondorf touched the Dark Triforce the Triforce of Power must have been removed from his body. The light struck me, but it must have been because you were a part of me at the time." Link figured. "You see, when a Triforce loses its owner, it searches for the next person most suited to hold its power. That person must have been you."

"Wow, I never expected this!" Jonah said excitedly.

"That's great, now that the evil powers are divided and the good powers are becoming steadily stronger, we might stand a chance of defeating this evil." Kirra said with a little bit of confidence in her voice.

Soon after their conversation the rocky pass came into view. They remembered that Daniel still had their horses, so they went back to his hut. As they entered they found that the place was trashed. The papers and books were all over the floor and all the shelves were toppled over. Worst of all, Daniel himself was nowhere to be seen. Link began to fear of what might have befallen him. Not necessarily because of Daniel, he feared for Epona. She had been Link's closest friend for a long time, and the two still shared a close bond.

"I wonder what happened here." Jonah said as he examined a large boot print on the floor. "Looks like more than one person did this, but what would anyone want with Daniel?"

"I don't know, but check this out." Kirra said. They went to see what she was talking about. There was a trail of blood droplets leading out of the house.

"That looks fresh, whoever did this was here only hours ago." Link noticed. "Be on your guard, I have a hunch that they're after us too."

"What makes y…" Kirra said as she was interrupted by a flaming arrow crashing through the window.

"Run!" Link shouted as they tried to escape the blaze that had already spread because of the paper and wood in the house. They ran out of the house, weapons in hand. They emerged to see four tall figures draped in purple robes, each holding a large sword, standing in a circle around the door. Behind them was a cart that was made for transporting prisoners. Tied hand and foot to one side was Daniel, bleeding profusely from a wound in his thigh.

"What do you want?" Jonah asked forcefully.

"You have disrupted our desert. You have angered our protector Tolrec. For that you must be punished by our queen." One of the tall figures said emotionlessly.

"And just who is this queen you speak of. Zelda holds temporary rule over Hyrule, she knows nothing about Tolrec, or even what is going on here." Link said in defense.

"We do not speak of your queen. We speak on behalf of our highness Lady Medivah." Another figure said as he walked toward them. "We are of the country called Athensia, to your north, past the boundary of the desert. This desert has been neutral ground between our kingdoms. This is the reason that the Gerudo wished to reside here; to escape from your persecution toward them centuries ago." He explained.

"What! That's a bunch of lies. I would have known about this." Link said.

"For a prince, you are not very knowledgeable about your own country's past." The tall person said with a chuckle. "Now, enough talk. You can come peacefully, or we can make you." The figure said as he took off his shroud.

The first thing that was noticeable about him was his skin color. It was a light tint of purple-blue. He had long blue hair held back by a three-inch long cone of some sort. He had pointed ears that were about a foot long. Then Link saw that he had a strip of cloth over both eyes. Link could see a savage scar that ran across both eyes. _How could he be a warrior and be blind._ He was about seven feet tall and muscles erupted from just about everywhere. He wore baggy pants, much like those of the Gerudo, with a sash made of very expensive fabric. He also sported an open vest of the same material that the pants were made of. He then fastened his weapons. Which were two slightly curved blades held by some device to the back of his hands. He had one such weapon on each hand.

He snapped his fingers and about fifty more of these beings came out of their hiding places in the rocky cracks and on top of the plateaus on either side. About half held long slender bows pointed at the three. Link hesitated for a second, considering the consequence of such an action. One of the archers let an arrow fly; it hit the dirt right between Link's legs.

"Fine we'll go with you, just let us explain ourselves to your queen before we are punished." Link said with reluctance. Jonah and Kirra both nodded in agreement, so they went into the cart. They were locked in and to Link's relief they tied their horses to the back of the cart as well. He looked at Epona and said, "I'm sorry." She gave him a look that said "_It's ok, I for give you._"

"I'm glad you're okay." Jonah said to Daniel, who was finally cut down.

"Yes I'll live, but this cut hurts like crazy." He complained. "And these crazy beings completely destroyed my home, everything important to me was in there."


	13. Athensia's Glory

**Chapter XIII**

**Athensia's glory**

The caravan had been traveling through the desert for nearly a week when one of these strange people said, "We have finally entered Athensia." Jonah looked around, he couldn't see a difference. It was still all desert around them. That night as they were stopped for the night Jonah pointed something out. "These people look a little like the Gerudo, don't you think." Jonah whispered.

"Don't insult me," Kirra said defensively." We're nothing like these big brutes."

"The little lady's right." One of the guards said, peeling a fresh fruit with a large hunting knife. Jonah was surprised that the guard could hear him all the way by the fire. "We are known as the Shade Elves. We are a race of beings that have lived in solitude in our country for many centuries."

"How could I never have heard of your kind. You must be involved in trade with at least one other profitable country." Link said as he joined the conversation.

"Actually we're not. Our country is completely self sufficient, we produce all the things we need ourselves. We do not pride ourselves in wealth and power, we simply produce what we need to survive. We actually have no monetary system. Nothing costs anything, and anything you may need can be provided by someone within our country. We simply give each other what we need and we all live healthy, happy, simple lives. This is actually the first expedition out of our country in over half a century."

"Wow, that sounds nice. So what do you do if you don't work for money?" Jonah asked.

"We do what we like to do. Some create things, others practice magic, still others play music, or make meals for enjoyment."  
Their conversation was interrupted by the elf that challenged Link. "No talking to prisoners!" He scowled at the guard. "They are in for capitol punishment, which means that we are to leave them alone until we come before Lady Medivah."

"Yes Captain Grundy!" The guard quickly saluted. Then quickly left them alone in the dark.

"That Grundy guy seems to be a tough nut for sure." Kirra said with a little worry in her voice. Jonah heard this and sat down close to her. "Don't worry, I'll protect you with my life." He whispered gently into Kirra's ear. She snuggled closer, feeling safe next to him. Link just sat there looking thoughtfully into the distance. He wished he could have told Zelda that he was going to be gone. He knew that she would be worried. He was supposed to be back tonight, but instead he was on his way to some foreign country to be punished. Something inside of him felt uneasy, like there was something important he was missing. There was nothing he could do, though, so he tried to put the feeling aside.

The next day they were all woken up by Grundy's harsh voice. "Alright! Time to move out! Two more days until we reach the capitol!" So the journey continued into the distance. Soon they emerged from the cruel desert to find themselves in a lush forest with trees that had a bluish hue mixed in with the green. They passed trees whose size rivaled those of the Forest of Lost Time. They also passed many wondrous forest creatures like none in Hyrule. It was a truly beautiful place. It had a feeling of humility, but at the same time majesty. Even the light in this land somehow seemed bluer, less yellow.

"This place is awesome." Kirra said as she marveled at the trees. "I've never seen anything like this. All I'm used to seeing is sand and stone, but this is refreshing."

"I've never seen anything like this either, and I'm from Pandera, the country is full of forests and mountains." Jonah said in awe. As they continued deeper into the beautiful forest they began to see more of these mysterious elves. Some splashing in the rivers and enjoying the day, and others concentrating on developing their potent magical powers. A few more were just hanging around in the trees. The females of the race were all very beautiful. They were slender with very distinguishable features and the most perfect faces imaginable. All the males were very fit, not as built as the soldiers, but definitely had muscle. They all had blueish-purple skin, and long ears like Grundy.

After two more days of traveling along a large river they came to a stop. Grundy told them that they were about to enter the capitol city of Athensia called Minazarahn. They slowly moved past a thick barrier of trees until they emerged in a clearing. It was breathtaking; there was a cliff on the back side of the city which a majestic waterfall flowed down. It split from one thick stream on top, to three thinner ones at the base. Most of the houses were built on the trees, like tree houses, but much bigger. Rope bridges joined them to each other. On a particularly large, twisted oak tree there was a large building. It was more decorated than the rest. At the base of the tree was the entrance, which was preceded by a staircase that seemed to be made of roots that stuck out of the ground.

"Release the prisoners here! They must walk in on their own two feet." Grundy ordered. So the four were set free at the base of the steps. Guards escorted them through the door into the audience chamber. The palace was a gigantic open chamber with windows in the top of the dark walls, which were dark purple because of all the shadows.

Both guards and Grundy bowed on one knee and the four prisoners were forced to both knees. The queen stood up and walked over to them with the grace of a gazelle and the majesty of a lion. She was the most beautiful being in the whole kingdom. Her perfect form and face, combined with her confident way of presenting herself attracted all attention in the room.

"What are your names!" She demanded with strict authority.

"Mine is Link and these are Jonah, Kirra, and Daniel." He said as he pointed to each in turn.

"I trust that Captain Grundy has informed you of your reason for being here, so I'll get right to the point. Tolrec is the guardian of our land. It emerges from the desert in times of trouble, and I sense that it has indeed risen again." Eyo'wen explained.

"You're right, your highness, it has, but not because of us. There is a demon called Daagog and a wizard called Ganondorf that are after an object of incredible destructive power. The reason Tolrec rose is because the entire world was and still is in grave danger." Jonah replied.

"I have heard of this Ganondorf that you speak of, but not of this other being. If what you say is true then we may have to do battle for the first time in ages."

"What! You can't possibly trust them can you! They are prisoners, they've disturbed Tolrec! How can you do this?" Grundy roared.

"Shut your mouth! Never address me like that again unless you want to end up on the garrows" Medivah shot back.

"Yes your highness, my sincerest apologies." Grundy said respectfully. "It's just that I don't see how you could trust these four."

"Well you have no real reason to distrust them. You don't know for sure whether these four are responsible or not. Besides, I can sense that these three have good intentions. The old guy just got dragged along." Medivah replied back. Then she addressed Link and his party. "Come with me. I want to show you something that only the royal bloodline has ever seen. "

"Wait, why are you being so nice to us?" Kirra asked.

"Because if what you say is true, then the fate of the world rests in your hands." She said solemnly. She led them through a door into a dimly lit room. Then she recited what seemed to be a long song. After a while some insignias on the far door started to light up. With one final note the door slowly rumbled open.

They emerged in a cavern that had no roof. The sunlight came through and shone brilliantly on the ankle deep water that covered the bottom of this cave. Over the top there was a thunderous sound and a fine mist. They were actually on the other side of the waterfall. On the far side of the cave in a particularly bright area was a giant stone shrine. It sparkled like jewels because the mist reflected the sunlight in a great array of colors.

"This is our shrine to Tolrec. Whenever freed of its desert prison it chooses to return to this spot until it is called back. So far in my life Tolrec has not come to this place." Medivah said as she pointed to the shrine. Then as if it heard them a deafening screech penetrated their ears. Over the top of the cave a great soaring inferno appeared. In all its majesty Tolrec descended onto its shrine. The water all around began to turn to steam. Then it did something that it hadn't done before. It spoke to them in their minds.

_Thank you young warriors. You're effort prevented that evil Daagog from setting his full power loose upon this world. Now there is one last thing that must be done to protect this world from destruction. If you prevail, this long and difficult journey will finally __come to a close. If not, then this world and eventually this entire universe will be destroyed. You must claim the real Mask of Supreme Being. This will most definitely be the hardest challenge you've ever had to face. Link, Jonah, Kirra, and Grundy, you will all need to work together to overcome the evil that will arise. You must assemble an army of incredible proportions in very short time. You must gather together every race in Hyrule as well as the human warriors of Pandera to make up this army. Our army must be so vast because at first Daagog and Ganondorf will unite their forces come after you four. Then if they do succeed in defeating you they will go after each other. The evil power could potentially overcome the world. Soon it could be too strong to overcome._

"So it's finally time to claim the prize." Link said solemnly. "Where is it?"

_It is in Hyrule, only not the Hyrule you know. You see, the gods work in the Sacred Realm. The things they make and do are all in that realm, which is sort of a copy of this world._

"So we have to go to this Sacred Realm to find the mask?" Jonah assumed.

_That is correct._

"So what are we waiting for, we have to go now!" Grundy shouted in his usual loud harsh voice.

"The big guy's right." Kirra said seriously "We should get ready now."

_Bear this in mind. Time flows much slower in the Sacred Realm. So you must make sure to gather up as many able bodies as possible to battle first. Once you have assembled this army you will find the way to get there. Now young warriors let me grant you one last power then you must be on your way._

Tolrec opened its gigantic wings and four tongues of flame swirled around the heroes. It engulfed them, but it didn't burn them. It slowly settled onto their weapons. Link unstrapped his Diamond Blade; from the hilt to tip of the blade a flame wreathed and swirled inside the sword. Jonah unsheathed his lava sword and when Tolrec's flame touched it the blade exploded into flames. The flames grasped the blade and the blade would forever be known as Volcania, blade of fire. The fire that surrounded Kirra came to her wave blades. They began to burn bright orange though they were as cool as always to her touch. Then Grundy's weapons began to glow, when he held them out the blades began to rotate at speeds that could shred a fully armored warrior to shreds.

_Now go, from now on you shall be known as the Fellowship of Fire. Under my flame you shall battle Daagog and Ganondorf, and with this you just may prevail. _Then with a majestic screech it ascended into the sky once again. Back to its timeless prison in the sands from which it came.

"Wow, that was incredible." Medivah said as tears welled up in her eyes. "I… I actually saw him. I am the first of my family to see him in three generations."

"Well, like Tolrec said, we really should get going." Jonah said.

"Link, Jonah, Kirra, this is not easy for me at all, but I really want to apologize for being so harsh. I only wanted to protect the peace of my country, I know you can understand that." Grundy said, struggling to get each word out.

"It's alright, I might have done exactly the same thing if you endangered Hyrule." Link said understandingly.

"So lets go get the Mask and end this evil time." Kirra said.

Over the next few days the four heroes stayed in Minazirahn to formulate a plan of action. One evening Lady Medivah issued a decree ordering every elf in Athensia to come to a gathering in Minazirahn. Overnight the entire population of the small country gathered in the city. In the morning she appeared before the people.

"My dear fellow citizens!" She began. "I have summoned your presence here today for an extremely urgent matter! Our peaceful way of life has been threatened by a great evil!"

Upon hearing this, the crowd began to murmur amongst itself. This was the first time in many centuries that their land had been compromised. The only thing that snapped the mob into silence was Grundy's harsh voice.

"Quiet! All of you! Lady Medivah is speaking!" He shouted over the crowd.

"Now, as I was saying. A great evil has descended upon the world. I believe it is in the best interest of this country if we mobilize an army. A force that can bring down this evil and once again shine light upon a shattered land!"

This time instead of shouting, there was absolute silence. This was unheard of. Never in their history had an entire army been sent out to the aid of another country.

"Now, I know this is very shocking news." Medivah said after letting the news sink in for a moment. "However, by this time in two days, I expect to see an army of brave men and women who will go fight the greatest battle of our age! If one is not assembled we will send out soldiers to recruit any man or woman they see fit to join! May you all think on this and be ready in two days!" She finished and went back into the palace where Link, Jonah, and Kirra were waiting.

"Our country will meet the foe in battle." Grundy reported as he stepped toward the three friends who were seated at a huge glass table.

"Great! As soon as we have them assembled we'll leave for Hyrule." Link said.

As the deadline grew closer one could feel the tension in the air and the fear in the voices of the people. Jonah had agreed that once they made it back to the safety of Hyrule Castle, he would go summon an army of his people. The four heroes knew that this would be a costly, difficult, battle, and that they needed the humans of Pandera in this fight.

The day arrived without incident and to the relief of them all, most of the men and a third of the women volunteered to be apart of this Army of Athensia. So as the 10,000 elves marched proudly out of Minazirahn the first pieces of this twisted war game were set in motion.


	14. A Love Unshakeable

_**Chapter XIV**_

_**A Love Unshakeable **_

"No way! There is no way our force will march into battle with an army of men!" Katrina spat upon hearing the request. "Link, I really do understand the gravity of the situation, but our customs forbid us from any dealings with men."

"Yes, but this is the fate of the entire world we're talking about here! Surely you can do away with customs in a situation like this!" Link shouted in rage at the stubbornness of the Gerudo queen.

Link, his party, and the Athensian Army had arrived at the Gerudo Fortress a week after leaving Minazirahn. They had begged and begged Katrina to do the same as Medivah had, and mobilize an army of Gerudo. This however didn't seem to be working. Suddenly an idea popped into Link's mind. "What if I challenge you to a one-on-one duel? If I win, you gather an army. If you win, we leave without another word." Link proposed in a desperate attempt to gain their allegiance.

After a minute of consideration Katrina agreed to the request and led Link to the sparring range. After making the stakes perfectly clear again Link drew his blade. Katrina also drew her wave blades after stripping off her royal robe.

"Begin!" The judge of the battle shouted as she rang the bell. Link was the first one to lunge, being in a hurry to get this out of the way. He tried bringing the blade down on Katrina, but the blow was deflected. This left Katrina the perfect opportunity to slash Link's side. With a flash of anger in his eyes Link turned and did a series of horizontal strikes in an attempt to disarm his opponent. When this failed Link jumped back and began to charge his sword up.

Katrina did the same and they both charged at each other full strength. Their weapons struck with such great force that it sent both fighters back a few feet. Link recovered quicker and tapping into his heightened senses. He foresaw Katrina's next strike and quickly sidestepped. Then with the blunt handle of his sword delivered a blow to Katrina's head. She tumbled ungracefully to the ground. Link turned her around with his foot and put the blade to her chest.

"I win. Now amass an army and be ready tomorrow." Link said calmly as he handed her his hand. She accepted it and Link pulled her up from the ground.

"A leader should never be seen on the floor in the midst of her people." Link said as he walked inside.

"You'll have your army, just so long as one of us leads them into battle." Katrina demanded.

"Very well, Kirra shall lead the Gerudo into battle." He said as he disappeared into the building. Link went to the area of the fortress that was designated for the Athensian army to stay while they waited. He walked into his quarters and treated the wound on his side. It wasn't fatal, but he knew he couldn't appear before an army with a gaping slash in his side.

After he did so, he went to the balcony and addressed the army. "Brave Athensians, I have just been in a meeting of sorts with Katrina. After a little convincing she has agreed to add her forces to our growing army! We are well on our way to saving the world."

There were cheers and applause from the excited elves now that they had nearly doubled their forces. "We depart at noon tomorrow! By nightfall we shall all be in Hyrule Castle town. There I will arrange for you to be quartered in the finest inns the city has to offer." Link explained. Then without another word he went to find Jonah.

He walked to the room where Jonah was staying, but when Link entered he found it empty. "I wonder where he went" Link pondered.

Katrina had just finished cleaning herself up from the battle when she heard a familiar voice. "Hey Kat, I have to tell you something." Kirra said sheepishly as she walked around the corner. Katrina was surprised to see Jonah walk up behind her and put his arm around her waist.

"What are you doing!" Katrina shouted in shock.

"Well, that's kind of what I wanted to talk to you about. Jonah and I have fallen in love." She said trying to avoid her sister's gaze.

"First Link, and now this!" She screamed. "Kirra you're old enough to know the customs we have! We are only to be with one male. The one that comes every hundred years."

"Yeah, but that one male was Ganondorf! Do you really want to carry on the race with him!" Kirra protested. "Oh please let me love him. I know you hate men, but there's something special about Jonah."

"Your highness, Kirra's right. I am in love with her, and we have agreed that no matter your decision we will continue to do so." Jonah said calmly.

"Well it seems you've already made up your mind, so why come to me?" Katrina said coldly.

"Because you're my big sister. I want you to approve of my decision. I mean, if you can bend the rules for Link, why not us too?" Kirra said as a hint of sadness sprung into the last few words.

"Argh all right. What more harm could come of this small thing. You have my approval, but don't mess this up. You could be exiled for this you know." Katrina said as she stared into her sister's sad eyes.

"Oh thank you, thank you, thank you!" Kirra shouted excitedly.

"What more can I say your highness, but, well, thank you." Jonah said as he let out a small chuckle.

"Alright. This mushy moment has gone on too long for my taste." Katrina said as she went to fulfill her other promise. Katrina still couldn't believe she was doing this. _No other Gerudo leader had ever broken the sacred Gerudo's code, but Link was right. The world is more important than some old tradition, and who knows, I could be the one to save a dying race._

That night Jonah and Kirra were standing together on a balcony overlooking the desert. "Kirra, listen, is this relationship going to put too much strain on your relationship with your sister? I don't want to ruin a good thing for you." Jonah said as he gazed ahead. "What are you talking about?" Kirra suddenly turned to face Jonah with a worried expression on her face. "Jonah, I love you. No rule or custom or code, or whatever will ever change that. Not even my sister could make me change my feelings for you." She said as she turned his face so he could look into her eyes.

"So if she had not approved of us, you really would have been exiled to be with me?" He said in a relieved voice. She simply nodded and they embraced each other in a long passionate kiss under the moon. When they finally pulled away from each other all Jonah could say was "Wow." He then left Kirra's room and headed to his own. On the way he passed by Link's room. The door was open and Link saw him pass. "Hey, where were you?" Link asked. Jonah just smiled and nodded towards Kirra's room. "Oooh, spending some time with the lady are we." Link laughed. Link remembered what it was like when he first fell in love with Zelda, almost seven years ago.

"And just what's so funny about that." Jonah asked as he crossed his arms."Nothing really, it's just good to finally see you happy." Link said as he got up and shut the door in Jonah's face. As soon as it closed Jonah heard Link burst out into laughter. Jonah just pounded on the door and walked off, nodding his head in disbelief.

The morning arrived without incident the next day, and after the four companions had all eaten they went out into the daylight. Standing before them were approximately 8,000 Gerudo warriors, each ready for battle. Katrina emerged from among them and said. "Just as you've requested, you have our army. Just as long as you make sure that no male leads them into battle."

"Katrina, I remember our deal. No worries, just pray for our protection as we march towards fate and the world's end." Link said. He then mounted Epona and headed off. When the army saw that he was going they began to march behind him. The Gerudo, however, seemed to seclude themselves and did not mix with the Athensian army. Link looked back and shrugged. There's just no changing some people.

Grundy soon caught up with him, he was riding a dark gray horse that was bred especially for war. "Link, do you really have faith enough to believe we can win?" He asked.

Link thought for a moment, trying to use just the right words. "Yes I do." He stated. " I've come to realize, in my many travels; that no matter the obstacles, or how much advantage the enemy has, there is always a way to succeed if we believe we can. If that belief slips away, however, then the hopes of victory against such an enemy become impossible. " Link said wisely. Just as he finished talking Jonah and Kirra raced by them at full speed.

"Catch me if you can!" Jonah shouted.

"Just watch me!" Kirra shouted back and kicked her horse into a full run.

"So what's up with those two anyway?" Grundy asked.

"Well," Link said as he recalled the past night. "They're in love." Grundy nodded becoming lost in his own thoughts.

Link saw the sad expression on the elf's face. "Did you ever love anyone Grundy?" Link asked cautiously.

A moment of silence followed until Grundy answered. "Yes, I once had a love, but that was long, long ago. She was lost when I found her in the desert and from that moment on we knew we were meant to be together. Then, as fate would have it, she became deathly ill. She left on night without telling me, off on some search of a power rumored to be able to reverse the illness. I've not seen her since."

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have brought that up." Link said apologetically.

"Think nothing of it. I've learned to deal with it long ago." Grundy said once again returning to his own thoughts.

They had just about exited the desert and were stopped for a midday meal. Grundy had found a high embankment overlooking Hyrule Plains. His companions walked up behind him and shared in the view.

"This truly is a beautiful land." Grundy said quietly. " I can see why so many wars have been fought over it."

"That it is my friend." Link said as he was reminded of what he fought for so many times.

"Hey Grundy, can I ask you something." Jonah said wearily.

"Go ahead."

"Well, how can you tell that this land is so beautiful as you're, well… um, blind?" Jonah said as he looked away.

"I may not be able to physically see this land, but over the years I've learned to see things a different way. Instead of my eyes, I use my other senses. I can feel, and hear, and smell that this land is beautiful. I can also sense people's presence. The same way I can feel an enemy's presence in the battlefield." Grundy explained. So once they finished talking Link went off to rally the forces to march once again.

By nightfall the army had reached Hyrule Market Town and were all exhausted. Link had arranged for the army to be able to stay in the various inns in the city. Link told his three companions to stay with him at the castle and they all graciously accepted the offer.

Link walked over the drawbridge and into the castle grounds. It was odd that there were no guards out, but Link remembered that they had all been killed by Ganondorf's raid about a month ago. He ran into the castle expecting to see Zelda and his children waiting for him, but was met with only echo filled halls.

"Zelda! Aaron! Lisa! I'm back, where are you all!" Link yelled, but no response came. Link immediately began to worry and ran off to his bedroom. He quickly jumped up the stairs, skipping three or four at a time. Link burst through the door and ran over to the bed, throwing the blankets around like a madman, Zelda wasn't there. Then he rushed over to his children's room. When he saw their beds empty a feeling of indescribable grief fell upon him. Utterly shocked and hurt he collapsed onto Lisa's little bed and began to sob.

Jonah ran into the room followed by the others, when they saw him slumped on the bed. "Link, I don't know what to say. I'm sorry." Jonah said as he tried to comfort his friend.

Link turned around and grabbed Jonah by the collar of his shirt. His eyes wide with panic despite the stinging of the tears dunning down his face. "He must have done it!" He screamed, tears of rage still pouring from his eyes. "He took them while I was away!" Without another thought he ran out the door and down into the Great Hall, all the while screaming every obscene thing he could think of at Ganondorf. "I'm going to kill that evil bastard!"

Jonah chased after him telling Link to calm down. It wasn't working at all, Link had been driven mad from grief and hate. Jonah finally tackled him from behind to stop him from running. Link struggled to get free, which resulted in Jonah getting elbowed in the nose. "Enough of this!" Jonah shouted as he struck Link's face with a powerful backhanded slap.

Link slowly calmed down, although his body was still shaking from the anger. "Alright… let me up." He said after a moment of lying still.

"Well, remind me not to get on your bad side." Jonah sighed as he wiped the blood from his face. He offered Link a hand and said. "A leader should never be on the ground in front of his people. Don't worry Link, I promise on my life that we will rescue your family from the clutches of that madman."

So after they all agreed that they would not rush into battle and wait until the army was assembled, they went their separate ways for the night. Link didn't get one ounce of sleep that night, his head was still spinning. He was thinking of ways to cause Ganondorf as much pain as he had caused him. Soon he realized that he wasn't going to sleep so he made plans to go to Death Mountain to recruit the Goron army.

Grundy found an empty bedroom and decided to sleep there. He immediately fell asleep due to the exhaustion of traveling. Jonah and Kirra stayed up a little longer just talking. Soon weariness found them too and they both retired to a room. The next day would be a big day for them all.


	15. Wheels of War

_**Chapter XV**_

**Wheels of War Set in Motion**

Link got out of bed at the first hint of sunlight and immediately busied himself by packing for his trek. After he finished he went to the kitchen and prepared a hardy breakfast for his friends. Jonah was the next to come down.

"I see that the smell of my cooking finally dragged you out of bed." Link teased. Jonah just grunted and mumbled something that was inaudible to Link. Grundy came down next. Link still couldn't get over Grundy's unique appearance and was startled for a moment when he spoke.

"So what's on the agenda for this fine day." He said readily.

"Well, I never thought of you as a morning person, Grundy." Link said as he brought out three large plates of food. Jonah took a sip of the strong Hylian coffee and immediately woke up. About half an hour after they were all seated Kirra came down.

"Sorry to keep you guys waiting, but I had to look presentable." She said as Link got up to get her plate.

"Sheesh, women and their appearance. I don't know how they'll fare in battle seeing as they are so concerned with appearance." Grundy said, trying unsuccessfully to be funny. So after eating the meal they got down to business.

"Last night I made my plans for what I think would be most effective way to go about this." Link began. "I will go to Death Mountain and recruit the Goron forces. Then I'll go to the other domains and try to gather soldiers from them as well. The Hylian Army is already assembled in the village, so when I'm done I'll add them to our ranks. I also think it would also be best if Jonah went back to Pandera in order to rally up some human forces to add to our army."

"I figured as much, so I asked Daniel if I could borrow one of his gryphons. It'll be much quicker than horseback." Jonah explained.

"Well then I'm going too." Kirra said forcefully. No body really objected to her going, so they let her.

"As for you Grundy. I believe it would be best of you would set up a military base in Hyrule Fields. Many of these soldiers will be fairly inexperienced, so we need you to train them rigorously." Link commanded.

"As you wish." Grundy said.

"So let's get going." Jonah said, breaking the sudden silence that fell upon them. So Link got his bag and went to the stables. He found Epona drinking from the fresh trough. He quickly mounted her and coaxed her into a gallop and he was off.

Jonah and Kirra went to the inn where Daniel was staying and asked if they could use his other gryphon as well. He didn't have a problem as long as they were both brought back in good shape. So he led them outside the city and blew into that horn. A few minutes later the gryphons landed and Jonah and Kirra each got on one of the mythical beasts. Soon they were off and soaring in the direction of Pandera.

Grundy stayed in the castle a while longer going over his project in his mind. He then went into town and gathered the generals from the Athensian army, as well as the leaders of the Gerudo. He found out what each was most experienced at, and told them to train what forces where sent to them. They quickly agreed and immediately began setting off quadrants of the base.

Link had been riding all morning and now the sun was high in the sky. He wanted to take a rest and wait for the cool of the evening, but he knew better. He would continue on toward his goal, which was now looming over him. He figured he could get there in another couple of hours if he kept up his current pace.

All the while his thoughts kept returning to Zelda and his beloved children. He said a heart-felt prayer for their safety and trudged ahead. "I promise, no matter the cost, I will rescue you." He swore to his wife. This was the first time that he had ever hated someone so much. He never knew how much anger one being could produce. He also knew that this kind of anger would most definitely cloud his reasoning. So he tried with all his will to put the anger aside, but to no avail.

His predictions were right. Within three hours he had arrived at the base of the cursed mountain. "I know how much you hate it here, so I'll leave you here. Just wait for me." He said as he dismounted Epona and left her with a gentle stroke on the nose.

His climb was treacherous, but he had been up so many times that he knew where all the dangers were. He made it all the way to the entrance to Goron City by nightfall. He slowly entered as two guards looked down on him. They soon recognized him and sent for Goron Link to come.

A few minutes later a loud voice called out. "Link! I'm happy to see you again!" Goron Link called out as he ran up and gave Link a thunderous slap on the back. "Why have you returned to this fine city?"

"Well I wish it were just for fun, but I'm afraid the situation is grave." Link said as he rubbed his back, trying to get the feeling back into it. He then started to explain the events of the past few weeks since he'd last been here. "And so we need to amass a tremendous army to take on Ganondorf and Daagog. We could really use your strength in this battle, my friend." He concluded.

Without so much as a second thought, Goron Link announced. "Of course you have our allegiance. We are your allies, that's what we are here for. We shall go to war under the flag of Hyrule, and the vengeance of my father Darunia!" He solemnly swore. "By tomorrow morn, you will have our forces ready for battle. And I will be at the forefront of them all. With my father's war hammer, none that stand in my way will live. Not even that evil madman Ganondorf will stand a chance!" Goron Link said proudly as he pounded his chest with his massive fists.

"Thank you so much. I cannot accompany you just yet, so you must go to Hyrule fields and report to General Grundy that I have sent you." Link ordered.

"Very well, but you should at least stay here for the night." Goron Link invited Link to a spare room within his own house.

"Thank you, I'll stay, but I must leave at the first light of dawn tomorrow. I must travel to the Zora's domain." Link said thankfully. So he went to the room and collapsed on the bed. He was utterly exhausted, for he had not slept the night before, and the hardship of travel had finally taken its toll.

The next morning he was awoken by a not so gentle knock on the door. He dragged himself over to the door and gave a yelp when he saw a giant orange face in his doorway.

"I'm sorry my friend, I'm used to being woken up by Zelda." He said.

"Don't worry about it. I have prepared breakfast for you." Goron Link said kindly. For an enormous, rock-hard creature, Link found him to be quite a good host. So after he finished eating he went outside. At the foot of the mountain was the army. There were at least 15,000 powerful Goron.

"Where did they all come from?" Link asked in shock. "I didn't think that many of your people still existed."

"This mountain contains only a small fraction of our total population. The entire mountain range is home to our kind." Goron Link explained. It made sense to Link. Why would the Goron only occupy one mountain when they have a whole range of them. "So I shall see you in the frontlines then, blood brother." Goron Link said with one last slap on the back for Link to remember him by. Then he curled himself up and rolled down the mountain to meet his troops.

"Well, I better get going too." Link said as he found his way back to where he left Epona the day before. He found her grazing on some grass she'd found. He quickly mounted her and headed off for the Zora's Domain. He had been traveling for almost the entire day with out a break. The trip there seemed to take longer than he remembered, because the sun was beginning its decent in the sky.

He decided that he wouldn't make it there by night, so he set up a simple camp. It was comprised of only his bedroll, a small fire, and a stake to tie Epona to. He ate some of the bread and dried meat that he packed for himself and tried to get to sleep by the fire.

However it seemed that it would not be, for as soon as he closed his eyes he saw visions of Zelda. She was chained to a cold brick wall, her long blond hair was twisted and tangled, and she seemed like she might have been sick. Her wrists were cut up from struggling with the cuffs on the chains. Link could see the tear stains on her cheeks, where she had wept for him to come rescue her. His visions then led him to two steel barred cages, suspended in the air with chains. As he drew closer he saw two small children, his children. They were both sickly pale and skinny. They were shivering because they were both stripped down to their undergarments. He began to hear a faint whisper saying. "Link help me, come soon. He's growing more horrible by the minute. Come, come rescue us please."

Link suddenly awoke with a start. He was drenched in a cold sweat and he was breathing heavily. When he finally oriented himself, he was overcome with grief. He realized that he had seen a glimpse of what Zelda his children were going through. He knew that it was Ganondorf trying to mess with his mind. So right then he quickened his resolve. There, with the moon still high in the sky, he began to head toward the Zora Domain. His mind set on rescuing his precious family. Nothing that wizard, or even that demon, could do would stop him, nothing could keep him away now.

Back at the military base Grundy gazed at the fields ahead as an army of orange boulder-like creatures marched towards them. A few minutes later Grundy rode out to find out who they were.

"Hoy there!" He shouted over the thundering of the creatures' feet.

"Greetings, I am a Goron named Link! Link sent us here to train under a general named Grundy!" Shouted the closest one. He looked threatening as he held up an enormous war hammer over his shoulder. He wore a helmet, much like a samurai would.

"I am Grundy of the Elves of Shadow. I am in charge of this base! You are a welcome addition to our army! Please split your army up into what you think you will be most efficient at."

"I know that we will best in close up combat. We are very resilient and powerful creatures. I believe we would be best in the heat of battle." Goron Link explained.

"Very good, then report to those two areas over there!" He ordered as he pointed to the quadrants designated for close combat. He had four distinct areas. One was designed to train archers with longbows and crossbows. Another area was designed to train soldiers to wield swords and other melee weapons most effectively. The third also for close combat, but instead of attack, it focused on defense. The last was for the Gerudo to train since they insisted on being separate from the men. They did whatever they saw fit; they trained to the beat of drums, like a deadly dance.

He stood there overlooking the army that was steadily growing, he was currently in command of about 33,000 lives. With the call of his voice he could very well be sending those thousands of lives to their deaths. He had the power that only the gods should possess, and every time a life was struck down, he felt responsible. He did not take pleasure in leading people to war, but he knew it was his responsibility. He knew he was spared from death, with only his eyes taken away, for this reason alone. To live a life of war.


	16. A Hero's Hell

_**Chapter XVI**_

**_A Hero's Hell_**

A/N: This chapter takes place while Link is in the desert and Athensia.

He felt more alive now than he had ever felt before, as if the true being from within himself had been set free. As he grasped hold of that Dark Triforce only one thing could be felt; absolute power. He laughed at the pathetic hero who barely managed to catch up with him.

"Link, I will come for you, not now, but soon!" Ganondorf said as he flew off on his stolen gryphon. He flew off contemplating how he would go about doing this. The first idea that came to mind was to strike closest to his heart. He would kidnap Link's family.

With his new magic he could do many horrible things. Things that only gods should be able to do. Essentially he had become one, now two evil gods dwelt on the same planet. Only one thing could come of such a thing; absolute destruction. With his new godhood obtained, Ganondorf could take all he wished with no real challenge.

He then used a powerful spell to open up a portal into the Sacred Realm. He sped through it, ready to put his terrible plan into action. Once the light subsided he found himself in what was the Sacred version of the Desert Colossus. Except the statue was not of a female Gerudo, but a towering image of Ganondorf himself.

"Hmmm, This will be the perfect spot to erect my palace." He said as he overlooked the landscape of Sacred Hyrule. Everything was just as it was in the real world, except this place had so much more magical energy. Ganondorf found that he could channel this energy into whatever spell he wished. A devilish grin spread across his face as he thought of the possibilities that could come from such power.

With the supply of magic in the Sacred Realm he began to conjure up a spell that would release his minions. For about an hour he chanted the same spell, letting as much power as he could contain come into him. He then placed his right hand on the ground. There was a large tremor as the magic was released. A moment later thousands upon thousands of his creatures began to emerge from the ground.

The creatures that emerged were all loyal to Ganondorf and were his most powerful servants. Moblins appeared holding their spears and clubs like deadly war-bred hogs. Then from the graveyard and all over Stalfos began to emerge from their once occupied graves, each carried with it a sword that arced top. Lastly came the Lizalfos, powerful lizard men that wielded deadly short swords.

"The time has come to finish what I have always set out to do. I will conquer Hyrule, but first, I must resurrect my fortress." He said to himself. "Minions! Build my fortress while I am gone, I shall return with two new guests!"

He repeated the spell and again a portal opened in front of him. He couldn't help but smile as he stepped through, on his way to take everything that was precious to Link away from him. He cast a spell that allowed him to fly and he sped towards the Castle. He noticed that it was already midnight, although he had only been in the Sacred Realm for an hour or two. He figured time went by much differently in the Sacred Realm.

He arrived at the castle within the hour. With a small portion of magic he blasted the huge castle doors off hinge and sent them flying at the few guards who were stationed to protect the princess. Many of them were caught in their path, but a few managed to get out of the way. Although scared, they charged at the Gerudo wizard that had just threatened their princess. Ganondorf, however, summoned his own sword and quickly defeated all seven guards.

As he pulled his sword out of his last victim he shouted through the halls. "I'm back!" He said dragging out the last part. Upstairs Zelda heard that all too familiar voice and was immediately overcome with fear. She ran for Aaron and Lisa's room. She would have to be the one to protect her family this time.

Ganondorf took his time walking up the staircase, making the feeling of anticipation last longer. He would shout something like, "I'm coming to get you!", or "Peek-a-boo! I see you!" as he came up to instill even more fear in their hearts. Soon he arrived at the doorway. He looked in to see Zelda with her arms strait out; the children clinging for their lives to her legs.

"Aww, how cute. Look at the family, all together one last time." He said in a mock kindness. Then his eyes glared at Zelda with a look that could make even the strongest man wet himself.

"Now it is time to complete my vengeance upon your beloved husband." Having said all he wanted he took a step forward, but was repelled by a barrier that Zelda had quickly set up. "You really think this can stop me?" The Evil King said as he began to strike the force field with his powerful fists.

Zelda could feel every blow as if he was hitting her directly. She began to lose energy. With one last thunderous blow the field collapsed, as did Zelda. She had strained so hard that her nose was bleeding from the pressure in her head.

"Argh!" Ganondorf shouted as he felt a jolt of pain shoot up his leg. He looked down and saw a small dagger sticking out of his thigh. He looked around and found Aaron with an expression on his face that reminded him of what Link looked like when he scored a hit. He jerked the dagger out and fingered his own blood on the blade. "Zelda, Zelda, Zelda, haven't you taught your children not to play with knives. Now I'll show you why. Because someone could get hurt." With that said he grabbed Aaron by the throat and picked up the boy. Aaron was helpless now, he kicked his feet in a vain attempt to set himself free. Soon he began to grow faint. Ganondorf saw this and knew he couldn't kill the child, yet. So he threw him into the unconscious body of his mother. Then with one swift blow to the back of her neck Ganondorf knocked little Lisa unconscious as well.

He then slung Zelda over his shoulders and carried one child under each arm as he flew off into the night once again. He cast the portal spell, which in this world used up a lot of his energy. He flew through and once again he was standing at the top of the Sacred Desert Colossus. The moblins, stalfos, and lizalfos that he had summoned earlier were busy erecting the fortress for Ganondorf. He again surveyed the land that he would soon reign. He no longer wanted only Hyrule; he also wanted the Sacred version of it.

As he looked around the somewhat familiar land his eyes fell upon the Sacred Lost Woods, he saw it. Floating above the ancient forest was none other than Daagog's Sky Palace. It was slowly descending to the ground. As it came lower Ganondorf could feel the evil that resonated from it, even from the entire length of the country. It stopped mere feet from the forest canopy and just floated there.

Ganondorf saw a single spec rise from the top of the tallest spire. It came speeding across the Sacred Fields toward the Evil King. Ganondorf knew it was Daagog for he could sense the evil presence getting steadily stronger. So he decided to meet him midway. He could see the anger in Daagog's eyes as they neared each other.

"So you dare to come against me even after what you did you traitor!" Daagog scowled.

"Did you honestly believe that I would follow you, be under you? I am the one who wields this Dark Triforce, and no way are you taking it!"

"Now why would I go and do a thing like that. I came over to propose an alliance. You and I team up to defeat the hero in green." He said with an evil glint in his eye. Daagog had no intention of letting Ganondorf keep what belonged to him, but this could work out to his advantage, at least until Link was out of the way. After he would kill the wizard and take what was supposed to be his.

"I like the sound of that." Ganondorf said after some thought. "Until Link is gone we shall combine our forces. Soon that pest will be out of the way."

"Good, this will truly bring this age to an end. With the destruction of this wretched world." Daagog said under his breath. Then he pulled out his summon stone. He held it high above his head and the crystal cast a large shadow across the land. However, due to the magic in this realm, the creatures that emerged were different than the Berserkers that usually arose.

These creatures were about seven feet tall. They looked like a gorilla; except for their heads. They all had a mane and head of a lion. They all held deadly looking battle-axes as well. There was one, the leader Ganondorf figured, who had a mane that was wreathed in crimson flames.

"Behold, the true extent of my powers! Rise my army of Draken, obey my commands and begin preparations for war!" Daagog shouted with all his might. A deafening roar rose up from the Draken as they all shouted with a battle cry that shredded the air, for each had the roar of a male lion.

"Impressive." Ganondorf said as he turned and flew back to his fortress. There he made plans to capture all the Sages so that no one could warn Link or interfere in any way. So over the next few days he went throughout Hyrule ravaging each land that was home to one of the Sages and in the midst of all the chaos. During the commotion he would capture them.

He already held two captive from before. He had released a beast within Death Mountain and used Darunia's sacrifice as the reason for his disappearance. He also went into his old homeland in the Gerudo Desert and started chaos there. He took Nabooru and the people thought she had fallen victim to the raging desert.

Now he set his sights on the Zora Domain. He opened a portal to its region in the real world. He emerged right in front of the entrance to the Domain. He entered quietly and navigated its complex corridors. In a room up in the distance he could hear muffled speaking. He hurried his pace and emerged in the audience hall of the King Zora.

"Ah, right in time. Please, come in." The King Zora waved a surprised Ganondorf into the middle of the room. "We suspected you'd arrive eventually. So now that the pleasantries are out of the way. Soldiers attack!" The large Zora commanded.

Ganondorf looked around as twenty Zora revealed themselves. Each held a small sword, or they sharpened their fins into weapons. "Come on, I'll destroy every last one of you." Ganondorf said calmly as the first Zora charged. Ganondorf quickly summoned his sword and ran the unsuspecting Zora through the stomach.

Upon seeing their comrade fall they all began attacking viciously. Ganondorf wasn't worried though. He simply used a portion of his power to send almost half of the Zora crashing into the far wall of the room. There was a unified grunt as they were all crushed by the impact of their watery bodies against the hard wall. Ganondorf quickly turned his attention to the ones that still surrounded him. He swung his sword in a long arc and decapitated three more. One managed to sneak up behind him and thrust his sword into his ribs.

Ganondorf roared in fury and turned to his foe. He used his power to freeze his opponent and after the Zora was defenseless he ran the sword through its chest. He still wasn't satisfied so he grabbed its throat with both ands and squeezed the little life that remained out of his defenseless victim. There were now only four Zora left and Ganondorf had only suffered one injury. This did not deter the others one bit though. All at once they lunged at the evil King from opposite directions. Ganondorf used a spell to teleport out of the way and the Zora wound up killing each other.

Ganondorf laughed maniacally as he said. "I love it when that happens." Then he turned his gaze to the king. There was a look of shock on his face.

"Wha… what have you done?" He shouted as he looked at the bloody massacre around him.

"I've come for your daughter, the Sage of Water. Where is she!" Ganondorf scowled.

"I'll never tell you!" King Zora shouted authoritively.

"Oh I think you will dear King." Ganondorf said calmly. Then he cast a spell which allowed him to access his victim's mind. The large Zora cringed as he felt what felt like hands prying and ripping through his brain. The pain was enough to drive one mad. Suddenly the pain stopped; Ganonorf had found what he needed. He receded from the king's mind and with a smile he said. "There, that wasn't so bad now was it."

"Ganondorf you blasted demon! I'll put an end to you right now!" The King Zora said as he branished his sword.

"Blast… that gives me an idea." He said evilly. He quickly built up a small ball of energy in his hands. As the king charged at him, he blew it out of his hand and it hit the King. The king stopped in his tracks. He felt like a raging fire was confined in his chest. He cried in pain as the feeling spread into is outer extremities. Then with one last shout of pain he exploded into dozens of jelly-like pieces.

Ganondorf simply let out a small chuckle. "Well that was easier than I'd hoped. Now for Princess Ruto." He used the king's memories to quickly locate the room that Ruto was in.

The door had been barred shut and appeared very sturdy. This, however, did not deter the Evil King one bit. He cast a spell and the hinges began to twist and crack. Then with a powerful fireball he blew the door down.

Inside, Ruto heard the commotion and began to worry. She turned in shock when the doors flew inward in a blast of fire. From the smoke emerged Ganondorf, his appearance even more ominous and evil than before.

"You know Princess, it's rude to keep people waiting at the door. Now come with me to my new home." He said. The way he toyed with his opponent's minds with his words before the capture made him all the more sinester. The way he would talk as if everything were normal, and he was just giving someone friendly advice. When he was really tormenting them by prolonging their fear.

When the Zora wouldn't reply Ganondorf stepped forward to take her himself. She tried to call for her father's help. "Daddy! Help!"

"Oh, poor thing, Daddy can't come now, he's in a very important meeting with the goddesses right now." Ganondorf said in mock sympathy. At these words Ruto collapsed in sorrow, no longer having the strength to stand. Ganondorf quickly moved in and with a swift blow to the female Zora's back, knocked her out. "Well, that was fun." Ganondorf said as he laughed triumphantly.

He slung the Zora Princess over his shoulders and made for the exit. When he emerged from the cavern, he realized that the day had long since gone. He began to cast the portal spell, but he felt drained from his overuse of magic. He managed to create one, but it was only three feet around. He slid the unconscious princess through and then crawled through. He looked up to see his tower had been finished. The black structure stood ominously thirty stories high and at every other story protruded a small ridge fixed with many cannons. Moblins also patroled the narrow ridges, marching from one side to the other and back again.

Ganondorf walked into the entrance where a rather large moblin greeted him. "Master Ganon, I bring Princess and children into dungeon. They there now, I put little blue creature there too?" He questioned, noticing the Zora slung ungracefully over the Gerudo's shoulders.

"Yes, that would be wise." Ganondorf said. The moblin panted like a dog that had been called good boy. He quickly relieved Ganondorf from his load and dragged Ruto into the dungeon.

Over the next several days he did similarly until all the sages of Hyrule were captive in his tower. Once his task was complete he focused his attention on what his nemisis was doing. He couldn't believe that Link would stay out of Hyrule for this long and he began to grow curious. It wasn't in his nature to leave for so long with a threat at his country's doorstep. Especially when he knew that Ganondorf was benind it. So Ganondorf pondered this for some time.


	17. From Rags to Riches

_**Chapter XVII**_

**_From Rags to Riches_**

They had been flying for several days with little time wasted on breaks. Since they had left Hyrule a sence of urgency loomed over both of them. They knew that although it would be nice to stop and talk, or do other things, the task at hand was far more important than mere desires.

"Hey Kirra, I think we're getting close to Pandera. That mountain range up ahead marks its borders. Fynn is not too far from the southern border either." Jonah said as he surveyed the familiar landscape with a new perspective from atop his mount.

"Finally! I was beginning to worry that we were flying in circles. So when we get to Fynn, then what?" Kirra asked.

"Well that's the hard part. I've got to convince some of the most powerful and stubborn people in the country to prepare an army to aid a country that they were practically at war with." Jonah said, a sense of hopelessness present in his voice.

Kirra caught this and tried to think of a way to put a positive outlook on the obviously grim situation. "Well, maybe they'll see that you and I, a Human and a Gerudo, can love each other, just maybe they might change their views."

"Yeah, maybe." Jonah said emotionlessly.

"Hey Jonah, I have a question." Kirra said, trying to change the subject.

"Yeah"

"I was wondering, who rules Pandera now?"

Jonah thought about it for a minute. "Come to think of it, I don't know. I killed Cynan and Agahnim was also killed, so I have no idea." Kirra was satisfied for now so she turned her attention to the country below. It seemed very beautiful form this high up, but she remembered what Jonah had said about the civil wars that had plagued the country. How there was a sense of fear over all the citizens.

Slowly they began to descend into Jonah's home country, the place where he suffered his most tragic losses. The two landed a way from Fynn so that the gryphon wouldn't be seen and stolen or hunted. This meant they had to walk for over an hour, but it felt good to use their own legs after the long flight.

As they walked through the large gate that was the entrance to the heavily armed city, Jonah had a look of satisfaction on his face. The market had been reopened and was now a thriving, bustling place of business. The people also looked well kept. They were no longer scrounging around the streets in search of a few cents to buy bread.

Kirra saw his face light up and asked. "Why'd you get so happy all of a sudden?"

Jonah looked around for a moment before answering his love. "Well, when Link and I were last here this place was disgusting. People were poor and the whole city was dilapidated."

"Wow, that's a big turnaround. I'm happy for you." She said as she moved closer to him and embraced him lovingly. He hugged her back, basking in the feeling of bliss that occurred every time he touched her. After a few moments they let each other go.

"I love you so much Kirra." Jonan said with a satisfied sigh.

"I love you too Jonah." Kirra responded. So after that moment had passed they went to the castle. Kirra was taken back by the size of it. It rivaled the Fortress in every way. It was tall and sturdy, triumphantly overlooking the rest of the now prosperous city. Jonah and Kirra walked across the drawbridges when they were abruptly stopped by two big guards.

"Halt stranger! State your purpose here!" One of the guards said forcefully.

"My name is Jonah. We've come to see the ruler of this country, I have a very important request to make before him." Jonah explained. The first guard whispered something to the other one and he ran off into the castle. A few awkward minutes of silence followed as they waited.

The second guard came back and told the other to let them through. They were led into the Great Hall. A blue carpet ran along the room leading to a small staircase on which was a throne of gold. Oddly enough there was no one sitting on it, instead there were six smaller seats beside it. Three were on the left and three were on the right. On them sat five people garbed in brilliant yellow robes, and one that dressed in an emerald cloak.

"Welcome back Jonah." Called one of the six. They all rose in unison and took a one kneed bow to Jonah.

"What's this for? You're the elders, why are you bowing to a commoner like me?" Jonah asked with a puzzled look on his face. Kirra was just a surprised by the action as he was, but decided to keep her mouth shut.

"Well, it's a long story so come closer and sit." Jonah and Kirra did as they were instructed. "Let us begin." Said the elder in green.

"After we first met you we were convinced that there was something extraordinary about you. Soon after you left we heard that Cynan had been killed. At that news we began searching through our scrolls and found that a commoner would indeed rise and defeat a ruthless leader. It also states that this individual would eventually step up to be king of this fine country for the remainder of this age."

"Jonah, you are that person. You are the king of Pandera." One of the elderly ladies explained.

He was shocked, they had to have been mistaken or something. "Are you sure? How can you be positive that I am to be this king in the scrolls?" Jonah asked, his throat dry and his eyes wide from the shock of the news.

"We are sure, trust us." The elder in green said.

"Wow! Jonah! That's great news! Its fantastic news! Now you can do what we came to do without any trouble!" Kirra said as she lunged at him with such force that he was knocked down. She kissed him excitedly and then pulled him to his feet.

"So Jonah it is time to claim you throne. Be seated while I get the crown." One of the elders said as he went to a table to the far side of the room. Jonah nervously sat on the majestic throne. The elder came back with a short scepter in his hand and a crown that had been placed on a maroon color pillow.

The scepter was made of the finest gold he'd ever seen. It had intricate carvings and insignias sculpted into it. There was an orb of pure sapphire encased in a swirl of gold that formed a small triangular tip. The crown had three thin bands of gold that went all the way around its circumference. Situated on the front of it was an oval sapphire surrounded by the same bands that held the crown to his head.

The elder in green solemnly walked over to the items. "With this crown comes the responsibility to rule with justice and honor." He said as he placed the crown atop Jonah's head. "With this scepter you have control of the entire kingdom, in your hand lies the future of this country." He said as he handed the scepter to Jonah.

Jonah solemnly said. "I promise you this day, that the future of this country will be changed. Not for worse, but for the good of all that I serve and rule. I promise that generations will look back and call this time a time of happiness and peace."

"Great, I look forward to it." The elder in green said with a big smile.

"Now I know this might not be a wise first move for a king, but it's extremely urgent. I must mobilize an army." Jonah said. The news shocked the elders.

"I thought you said that you were going to make peace, not war." One of the elders said, the worry apparent in his voice.

"No, I'm not invading any country, I'm moving our troops to Hyrule." Jonah said trying to explain his reason for doing such a thing.

"Why would you disrupt the delicate balance that keeps us from war?" the elder reasoned.

"No, no, do you remember that guy I was traveling with?" Jonah asked. They all nodded. "Well, he's the king of Hyrule. I'm really good friends with him and his country needs support badly." He explained.

"Well that makes sense now. So be it, I'll print up a decree and get the army to mobilize outside the city." The elder in green said. Finally after all the commotion settled down Jonah and Kirra went to his new royal bedroom. There they lay down to sleep until the next day.

Kirra congratulated him again with a long passionate kiss, but suddenly she felt something else. She stopped abruptly, trying not to be overcome with lust. He didn't seem to notice, and she was glad. She wanted to "be with him," but not just yet. It didn't seem like the right time.

The next day they relayed the whole story to the elders, who were shocked at how much such a young man had gone through. After they were out of there Jonah took some time to fly Kirra around the country. They visited various places that Jonah had been on throughout his journey. One place that they visited was Jonah's hometown.

Jonah had not returned here since the night his parents were killed, but came because Kirra thought it would be good for him to see. The town itself was just like any other; surrounded by thick walls and guard towers every couple of blocks. He slowly walked through the all too familiar streets that lead him home.

Kirra looked over her shoulder not noticing that Jonah had stopped about fifty feet behind her. He was staring emotionlessly at a certain house. There were boards nailed sloppily over the front door. Kirra started to feel bad. "Jonah," She whispered quietly. " We can go back if this is all too much."

"No, I need to do this. For the past twelve years I've run away, but now… I must." So with that he walked over to the door. He pulled on one of the boards and it came off the door. He was able to get it open and slowly walked into the dark house. A layer of dust clung to every surface, and signs of termite damage and mouse infestation were present.

Jonah just stood for a minute taking a deep breath of the musty air. Then he continued down a hall to where his old room was located. He opened the creaky door and walked over to his old bed. He sat on the edge of it and pulled open his night drawer. He rummaged through his various childhood treasures. He smiled as he pulled out a slingshot that he would pester the guards with. Suddenly his heart grew cold as his hands came upon a small locket.

Jonah reverently opened it. His eyes filled with tears as he saw the faces of his beloved mother and father. She was a beautiful brunette with a full face and high cheeks. His father was a handsome man with a rough looking face and a thick mustache over his lip. Kirra walked over, noticing the tears streaming down her love's cheek. She sat down and embraced him warmly.

"It's okay, it's okay." She said lovingly as a mother would as she stroked his head. He looked up at her and noticed why he was so attracted to her.

"You remind me of her. You have the same eyes." He said as he closed the locket and placed it around his neck. He held it in his hand and gave it a small kiss. "Good bye mom and dad. I always loved you and will always remember you." He said. Now he had finally seen what he needed and began to walk out.

The two got back to the gryphons, neither saying a word to one another. By the time they returned to his new home it was sunset. He walked up to the top of the tallest tower. Kirra soon joined him and they both gazed out, admiring the spectacular Panderian sunset. "Talk about going from rags to riches." Jonah said as he looked at the woman at his side.

They both looked into each other's eyes before falling into an embrace that would last until the sun had completely disappeared behind the horizon. They decided that it would be a good idea to get some sleep, because the next day was going to be rough.

The next morning they were woken up by a trumpet sounding loudly in the streets below. Jonah sluggishly drug himself to the window to see what all the commotion was about. His eyes nearly popped free from their sockets when he saw what was outside. At least a hundred thousand troops were orderly ranked just outside of the city gates. "Kirra come here quick!" He shouted as he started to get dressed. She also drug herself to the window and had a similar reaction to what she saw.

In only ten minutes both were already riding to meet their assembled army. The head elder rode out to greet him. "Greetings your majesty." He said bowing the best he could, considering he was on a horse.

"Morning." Jonah said simply as he began to laugh from excitement at the sight of such a vast army. "Wow, I never knew Pandera had such a big army."

"This isn't even the full force. We left enough to patrol the towns safely." The elder explained.

"Good work, … um…." Jonah suddenly turned red. "I don't even know what your name is." He said rubbing the back of his head in embarrassment.

The elder laughed realizing that Jonah was right. "My name is Richard." He said as he handed his hand out in a formal greeting. Jonah greeted him officially for the first time. "Okay, now that that's out of the way. Let us move out to Hyrule!"

Jonah and four of the elders headed up to the front of the army. The other two would stay to rule in Jonah's absence. As he passed each rank, every soldier bowed. Jonah really had to get used to this because he really didn't like people bowing to him. So as they headed off into the distance the army began to march. Each step in unison, making a thunderous pounding sound as their armored feet clashed with the ground. Jonah smiled at the fact that he could help Link out in such a big way.


	18. Home Sweet Home

**Chapter _XVIII_**

**Home Sweet Home**

Nearly three weeks later Jonah entered Hyrule's borders with his huge army in tail. In the distance Grundy could see a cloud of dust coming near. Fear welled up inside the Shade Elf. He quickly rode up to a ledge overlooking the base. He panicked, thinking it was Ganondorf's army coming already. When he got to the peak of the ledge he let out a sigh of relief. In front of a vast army rode Jonah and Kirra on their gryphons.

Soon Jonah arrived with a huge grin on his face. "Hey there! I have a little present for Link behind me." Jonah said as he rode up to Grundy.

"Well I'm going to have to make the base here a lot bigger." Grundy said as he eyed the hundred thousand-man army that followed Jonah. Every warrior was clad in blue and silver armor and their flags had the emblem of a horse neighing. Grundy saw some heavy war machines in the distance. "You even brought catapults with you!" Grundy said excitedly.

Kirra jumped off her gryphon and ran up to Grundy. "It seems that Jonah has forgotten to tell you some more important news. News that should prove shocking." Grundy looked at her in confusion for a minute. Then she exclaimed, "Jonah is the king of Pandera!"

Jonah's face turned as red as a tomato. He dismounted his gryphon and walked up to Grundy. "Is this true?" Grundy said in disbelief.

"You can be sure of it my friend." Jonah said as he walked over with Grundy to the new military base. "Well it seems you've kept busy yourself while I was away." He said as he looked at the large base set up. It was orderly and the training was intense. He had amassed an army of almost every race in Hyrule, not to mention his elves from Athensia.

The Gorons trained with their hammers and clubs. Some even wielding weapons that appeared to be bomb flower launchers. The Gerudo trained with their spears and scimitars. Dancing to a fast paced drumbeat. Jonah even saw what appeared to be children that were dressed much like Link. They had powerful slingshots that shot flaming deku seeds that would explode upon impact. There were also Zora; some used scimitars, others had nothing more than their own fins, still others practiced in archery. Most of the Shadow Elves were archers, though some wielded swords. Together with Jonah's massive force of men they numbered around 150,000 strong warriors.

"Well I suggest we divide up your men Jonah." Grundy said as he inspected the ranks. Men of every size, race, and build were there to help protect a country that they had nearly come to war against in the past. Jonah busied himself separating the archers, swordsmen, pike men, and spearmen into certain divisions of the camp.

"So where is Link anyway?" Jonah asked after some time.

"He is currently looking for a very special force to join our ranks. He is trying to summon the Sheikah tribe to help us. They will perhaps make the most important addition to our army due to their innate ability to summon large amounts of magic and use it in devastating spells." Grundy explained as he imagined the sight of the Sheikah calling down fire and lightning upon their foes.

Link hadn't traveled so much within Hyrule since his first adventure. He had been to almost every domain recruiting forces to add to the army that would forever alter the fate of the world. It was exhausting work traveling, convincing, making deals, and even begging. In spite of all the exhaustion he never slowed down or gave up. His resolve to rescue his family and his hate for Ganondorf kept him from wearing out.

He had entered the Zora's domain expecting to have to do a lot of convincing to get an army from them. He was shocked and sorrowed to learn of what had conspired there only days before his arrival. Their king was brutally murdered and their princess taken by the same evil man that pained Link so. It took almost no thought for them to mobilize their warriors. They would fight in vengeance for their laid king and their captive princess. Their forces, although not many, were determined. Which in the end could prove more powerful than numbers. So their 5,000 warriors readily returned to Grundy's camp, ready to fight to the death.

Link's next destination was the Kokiri Forest, his childhood home. He knew it would take a miracle to convince the Kokiri to come out of their precious forest. He knew he would need to talk to the only being that might be able to convince them. He would see the Great Deku Tree. After making his way through the maze of the lost woods he came upon his village. He couldn't help but feel a sense of "ahh, I'm home" as he walked through. Although it had been more than ten years since he'd been back he still knew the place like the back of his hand.

As he came towards the middle of the village all the child-like Kokiri stopped whatever they were doing and fled into their little huts. Link was slightly hurt to see that his childhood companions had forgotten their little black sheep. Suddenly a smug voice sounded from behind him.

"Whadda you doin here? You ain't no Kokiri. Get atta here now!" The voice said, trying to sound threatening. Link turned to see his childhood enemy Mido standing smugly with his arms crossed. Link almost laughed at the expression on his face when Mido finally realized who it was that he had addressed so rudely.

"Well Mido" Link said adding extra emphasis on his name. "I came here to see the Great Deku Tree. So you going to let me through, or do I have to have a special sword and shield like before?"

"N… No go ahead." Mido said still shocked that the powerful man in front of him had been the kid he used to get so much pleasure from bullying. He quickly moved aside letting the towering Link through.

Link emerged in the large clearing around a gigantic long since dead tree. Its branches easily dwarfing the other trees around it. In front of the original Deku Tree was a slightly smaller tree. This other tree had grown from the single seed that the Great Deku Tree had released.

"Link, what a surprise! Well, actually not really, but nice to see you anyway." It said in a low bellowing voice. The seed had in it all the memories of the original Deku Tree, he also had the same strange ability to see the events around the world. He was what some would call a seer or a wise-'man'.

"Good to see you too Deku Tree." Link said as he stood reverently before his old protector.

"Link I know the reason you have come, but before you ask let me tell you something." Link simply nodded intently. "Ever since my father tree died, the barrier that protects the Kokiri forest from evil has been weakening. In remote parts of the forest foul beasts have been breaking through. This is endangering the Kokiri that live in the outskirts of the forest. I don't know if it's because I am not yet full grown, or simply that this world is so tainted with evil that it is slowly becoming impossible to keep it out."

Link looked concerned at the horrible news and quickly resolved to solve this little dilemma before asking the Deku Tree for any favors. "So do you know of any way to put an end to this?" Link asked with a determined voice.

"I have a theory." The Deku Tree began. "It is my belief that since Saria, sage of the Forest, has disappeared, a new evil was allowed into the forest. This evil could be what's allowing the creatures in."

"So I have to defeat this evil in order to stop this weakness in your barrier." Link said.

"Yes, and if you do, I will convince the Kokiri that it is their responsibility to return the favor." So with that said Link turned and left the clearing. He now had another reason to go after Ganondorf; he had gone after Link's only childhood friend Saria. She was practically his sister and hearing that she'd disappeared made Link all the more furious.

It took some time for Link to return to his normal state and when he did he began to sense something fell and evil off in the Lost Woods. So without turning back he entered the enormous maze. His only guide was the feeling of evil in a certain direction. Every passage looked exactly the same and every clearing was identical. Soon Link began to doubt his senses. Surely he would be at the source of the problem by now.

After another half hour of walking around in what could have very well been circles, he emerged in a clearing that was a little different than the previous ones. It seemed chilled somehow, like the forest life was sucked out of it. As he continued it also began to get colder. Soon he was sloshing through a swamp-like portion of the woods. Some of the swamps had frozen over and were able to be crossed, but others had to be either detoured completely or swam through.

Link suddenly saw some scraggly shrubs rustle in the distance. He heightened his senses and heard footsteps approaching him quietly. Link felt a cold shiver climb up his spine as the creature pounced. It had the appearance of a wolfos except that it was already dead. Link didn't have time to ponder as he readied his blade. He caught the creature in the side, exposing undead organs. The creature snarled and pounced again. This time it ran strait at Link and tackled him to the ground.

Link could smell the creature's rank breath at his throat. He had only a second to react, but that second was all he needed. He quickly brought his blade up into the beast's side, easily skewering it through. He pushed the dead body off of him and continued on. He kept his senses heightened the entire time.

Link continued on for some more time until he sensed another presence ahead. From one of the dying trees jumped one of his oldest foes, a stalfos. This one was different however. It wore a dark shroud and appeared to be unarmed. Link still approached with caution. He found out the reason it was unarmed because it started chattering a spell. From the stagnant water around it five normal stalfos warriors arose.

In unison they charged at Link, who dodged them all. He slammed one in the ribcage with his shield, effectively crushing it. The creature crumbled to the ground, but a second later it was back in action. Another stalfos behind Link worked up the courage to attack. Link's senses felt it and instinctively his sword moved to intercept the blow. He spun around and sliced through the rotting flesh between its vertebrae, easily cleaving the skeleton in half. Just like the other one, however, it was back on its feet again in a second.

Link turned his attention to the spell caster and ran for him. He leapt clear over a group of stalfos that attempted to stall him. With a powerful thrust of his sword he jammed his sword through the skull of the lead stalfos. The second it crumbled to the ground, all the others collapsed into a pile of bones, all lifeless as well.

The evil power was definitely coming from a place not too far off, because Link began to feel an unnatural cold in the air. It seemed to be sucking the heat out of everything in the area, including him. Soon he saw a small island in the middle of a particularly stagnant part of the water. He knew the evil was originating from it, for he could feel that strange cold become much stronger. He reluctantly stepped into the water and swam over.

In the distance he could see a single figure standing on the island. The cold seemed to be resonating from that being. As Link finally crawled onto the slightly frozen island he was greeted by none other than his own dark counterpart. "Whelll, I mussst sssay thattt your presssence here issss rathhher revolting. I guesssss I'll jusssst have to teachhh you to mind your own buisssnesss." Dark Link said with a deadly, sort of piercing whisper, looking down on his opponent with eerily glowing red eyes.

"I'm not so glad to see you myself." Link spat as he stood to face his foe. Dark Link jumped to the back edge of the island and drew his shield and sword, much like Link's old master sword, except made out of some hardened black stone. Link followed suit and both glared angrily at each other, challenging the other to make the first move. Then at the same instant they both leapt at each other with all their strength. Each attempting to take down the other as quick as possible. The two combatants clashed, their swords sending sparks into the air from the impact. They both glared at each other hatefully for a second before disengaging, only to clash again.

The fight continued on in that manner for hours, neither opponent able to take the other down. The fight consisted of short bursts of fighting followed by a moment of rest to decide on another technique. It was during one such pause that Dark Link got a terrible idea. He jumped back and let his guard down. Link leapt at the chance and charged in to slay his foe. Just as Link was about to strike, Dark Link's face contorted to that of a weeping Zelda. At that moment Link's heart was flooded with emotions and he stopped short.

The distraction was all Dark Link needed. He jumped and slammed his knee into Link's chest, sending him crashing to the ground a few feet away. He leapt on his opponent and placed his left hand two inches from Link's chest. Link began feeling that deathly cold seep into him. He felt his life seeping away with the warmth. As he started to lose consciousness he began to remember all the people that were counting on him and he suddenly felt the life coming back. The source of this life and heat was nothing other than his new Diamond Blade that had been infused with Tolrec's flame. Dark Link felt it too and decided to try what he did before, again. This time he transformed his face into the image of Ganondorf, bad move.

Link was suddenly overcome with hate. The man that had caused him and his family so much pain was mere inches from his face. With a burst of power Link tore through Dark Link's spell and jammed his sword through the stomach of Dark Link. Dark shadow matter began to leak out of the wound. Stunned, Dark Link jumped back and began to nurse it by freezing the shadow matter with cold to seal the wound, but it didn't work. The flame from Link's blade was slowly spreading over the wound.

Link glared at him with a look of pure hate and disgust. His eyes bordered on insanity as he let a small smile creek up his cheeks. That look alone could have been Dark Link's doom, because it caused him to take a step back and stumble over a rock. The second his guard was down Link struck. He leapt up and came crashing down with his blade. Link's blade made a sizzling sound as it came down upon his head and continued down until it was stopped by the ground under his foe.

A shrill cry of agony filled the air as the halves of Dark Link exploded into burning shadow matter. Link couldn't help but feel some pleasure from his foe's cry of agony. "I know your watching Ganon! Let that be a warning for you, because that is only the beginning of what I have planned for you!" Link cried into the air.

He immediately began his trek back to the Deku Tree; each footstep now a force of pure determination and rage. A few hours later he emerged into the clearing. In front of him every Kokiri was armed with their best slingshot and as much armor as their small bodies could hold.

"Ah, Link I sense the life coming back into the forest, good work. Now I have some good news that may very well prove to be a great asset to us." The Tree said in his usual slow broken way of talking. He had a very slow way of speaking and would pause for long "breaths" before continuing on.

Link's fists unconsciously clenched as his patience quickly reached its end. "WHAT IS IT ALREADY YOU STUPID HUNK OF WOOD!" He had no intention of saying that, the words just escaped his lips.

"Well, the Sheikah have agreed to help our cause," Deku Tree said, trying to ignore the hateful comment. "They heard of Impa's disappearance and agreed to come to Hyrule."

"Really? I thought that Impa and Sheik were the last of the Sheikah." Link said, his face showing a look of puzzlement on it

"No, no, they were the last in Hyrule. Although scarce there are approximately 200 Sheikah in existence. Most are scattered around every nation in the world."

"So will they find me, or will I have to go gather them all?" Link asked impatiently.

"No, no you need simply to go to the Temple of Time and summon them to the army, but…" But Link was already running full speed out of the forest by the time the Deku Tree looked up.


	19. Emotions

**Chapter XIV**

** Emotions**

A/N: Hi everybody, this chapter is very short, but very powerful. I really hope I do a good job of showing the internal struggle that Link is wrestling with.

He had been riding as fast as his poor horse could go all day and even at night he wouldn't stop his riding. He was now driven by a motive that even he would have considered bad, had he been in his right mind. He was now being driven by hatred. His previous battle with his dark counterpart had angered him to no end. In fact, a stander-by would have thought that it was Link who had the evil intentions. A look beyond rage was plastered on his face, unchanged by the daylight beginning to emerge in the sky.

He thought only of one thing; his hate for Ganondorf. That single being occupied all of Link's mind. He knew that there were bigger forces at work here, but in spite of it, only that Gerudo menace occupied his mind. He even began to forget why he hated him so much in the first place. Blinded completely by rage, not even Zelda came to his mind, only Ganondorf.

Because of his ruthless racing he arrived at the Temple much sooner than it would have normally taken. The sun had just begun its ascent into the sky as Link stopped in front of the ominous looking temple. He tried with all his strength to suppress his emotions as he climbed the staircase leading to the two huge double doors. As he pulled it open he managed to suppress his anger, although still shaking slightly from anger.

The inside of the temple was bright and full of colors, as the sun shone directly through many of the stained glass murals. The marble walls also reflected the morning light in every which way. The Deku Tree was right; sitting reverently in the pews were around 200 figures. All were wearing dark blue shrouds with the symbol of an eye with a single tear falling from it. It was the sign of the Sheikah.

One of the figures noticed him and came up to him. "So y'r th' great hero o' time." She said in an accent of one of the countries far to the south of Hyrule.

"Yeah, now if you don't mind, we have a war to fight. Let's go already." Link said anxiously.

"Come now, Ah 'xpected such a grand heru tu have much betta mannas dan dis ga." Said another figure in an accent Link couldn't even begin to place. Soon the whole room was a jumble of people all talking to Link in every language.

"Silence!" Shouted a voice that Link definitely recognized. It belonged to none other than Sheik himself. He wore his usual blue 'jumpsuit' with a light tattered shroud around his shoulders. His face was covered eyes down by a strip of cloth so that he could not be recognized. He had a thin belt and on it hung hundreds of small throwing needles. He was a very mysterious and imposing figure indeed.

"Link! I completely understand how you feel, but if you expect us to follow you, you're going to have to get a hold of yourself. We can't follow someone who will recklessly run into the hands of defeat because of their emotions." Sheik said calmly.

"Yeah Sheik! And HOW COULD YOU POSSIBLY KNOW WHAT I FEEL!" Link yelled as tears of rage began streaming down his face. All the emotions he'd managed to suppress came back with such force that he wound up screaming at one of his only friends of old.

"I know… because I've lost my family as well, including my own mother Impa!" Sheik shouted, obviously upset at Link's stupidity. It hit Link all at once right then; everyone he knew has suffered from this evil that had befallen the world. Link realized that he had been completely selfish and utterly foolish. He wasn't the only one who had lost someone precious to the forces of evil. He couldn't take it anymore and he collapsed hands and knees onto the floor, a mess of emotions and pain. He gripped his head in agony, trying somehow to force the pain and anger out of is mind.

Sheik felt compassion for him, but for him to be able to be victorious he knew that Link had to be focused. So he reluctantly began to taunt Link even more. "You know, come to think of it, all of the sages have been taken. If only you would have been here, you could have stopped it." Sheik felt horrible, but Link wasn't completely better yet so he continued. "Your family is trapped and hurt, and all you can think of is Ganon? Pathetic."

That last comment hit Link like a ton of bricks. In fact he looked like he'd been physically struck with a deathblow. He couldn't take it anymore. He cried at the top of his lungs "Goddesses! Forgive me! Help me! PLEASE!" Then he went silent, sobbing on the floor. It was quite a pitiful sight; the greatest hero in Hyrule, brought to his knees by his own emotions. Although powerful, he could not overcome the one thing that can become any man's undoing, his own emotions. Rather ironic actually, no one but he himself could bring himself down. Soon he went from bawling loudly to just silently sobbing on the hard cold floor of the temple.

Then a sudden calm fell upon him, like he felt whenever he was with his family. His thoughts then began to play through the events of the past few months, but rather than being viewed in such a negative light, they were put into a positive perspective. It was like something divine was guiding his thoughts, telling them the significance of all the events. Even Zelda's kidnapping, he could sense, was somehow going to turn out for the best. Somehow the end of this tale began to seem a little less grim to the Hero of Hyrule.

After a few minutes of letting Link come to his senses again, Sheik walked over and offered Link a hand. Link wiped his face free of tears and took it. Using Sheik as support as he regained his composure. "Thank you Sheik. Thank you so much, and you're right; Ganonorf is not the focal point here. Our loved ones are." Link said weakly. Now all the Sheikah bowed, pledging their allegiance to Link.

So, with Link's sights realigned and a new powerful force behind him, he began his trek back to Grundy's base. His vision clear and positive again. Since Link had started this latest journey he hadn't seen things through any positive light. Now he saw only the positive side of things, having a strange feeling that everything would soon be resolved.


	20. The Calm Before the Storm

**Chapter XV**

**The Calm Before the Strom**

A few days later, back at Grundy's base, Link sent out a decree. This ordered every soldier in Hyrule to report to Hyrule Fields. He was very pleased that all his friends had come through in such a huge way. Link honestly expected only about half of the amount that was currently training vigorously in the base. Jonah had come through in a huge way and along with all the Athensians and Hylians their forces had grown to massive proportions.

"The goddesses have surely smiled upon us this day, haven't they.' Grundy said calmly to Link.

"Indeed they have my friend." He answered. Just then Jonah and Kirra walked up behind the two. They never grew tired or irritated of each other's company. Link was glad to see something good happen in Jonah's life.

"So when do we move out?" Jonah asked, always being one to speak for the thoughts of everyone else.

"Honestly, I have no clue." Link said, pondering this for a minute. "Tolrec said that I would find the answer when we had amassed our army, and here it is. I'm beginning to worry about the situation."

"Don't be. The divine see all things to pass, surely they are just waiting until the opportune time. Their timing normally does not agree with our hasty plans." Grundy said wisely.

"Indeed, I sense things will be put into motion in a short time." Kirra said.

"Ok, if all we can do is wait, then we might as well begin our battle strategies." Link said, completely changing the conversation to business. "Gather the leaders of each group and we shall meet in the castle." Link ordered as he waved his hand over the camp.

About an hour later eight of the most powerful beings in the entire planet were all assembled in a single room, around a single table, all focused on a single goal. This time of darkness had forged many new alliances and friendships. Link looked around the table at his comrades. Even though he took up the role as leader, he never put himself above any one of them.

Jonah, the new king of Pandera, was seated at Link's right side with Kirra at his right. Grundy, captain of the Athensians, sat to the left. Beside him sat a childlike figure, this being none other than Mido. Beside him sat Medino, leader of the Zora until princess Ruto was rescued. To Kirra's side sat Sheik, the all too wise leader of the Sheikah tribe. Beside him sat the hulking figure of Goron Link. All looked intently at him for direction and leadership. This was truly the highest honor able to be bestowed unto any mortal.

Soon the room was a mess of commotion and conversation. All trying to put in their idea of the most successful offensive at the same time. Each was very good, but it lacked the sense of "this is perfect" that all were expecting. After many frustrating hours, everyone had pretty much put their two cents in, and were now actually working together. Each was now adding to or slightly altering a basic offensive battle plan.

"So then the right flank comes in once we're all there." "We have the archers here, and the foot soldiers advancing to this point." "No, cause then we leave our left open for attack." These were all things that could be heard coming from the group.

Finally, after almost a full day of arguing and adjusting, and planning and re-planning, they were finished. The plan was foolproof; all immediately agreed that this was the best possible strategy. The basic strategy involved three flanks, not including archers. One large group marching directly towards the enemy. Then two smaller flanks would attack from the sides, diverting the attention of the enemy. Then from the rear of each flank, the archers would begin their assault. Medino came up with a brilliant idea. He proposed that if the field had a body of water, that the Zora should launch a surprise attack from within it.

"Finally, we have it decided." Kirra said as she rubbed her temples, trying to alleviate her headache.

"Now all we have to do is wait for the mask's location to be revealed before we depart." Link said in frustration. All the members of in the room nodded in agreement. So with that they dispersed for the night.

That night Link again started having these visions. The same kind that had plagued him before they found the Dark Triforce. Sudden flashes of images and a jumbled up group of beautiful voices all talking at once, each in a language that was foreign to Link. He tried to concentrate on what the voices were saying, but the more he concentrated, the more jumbled it would become. He then tried the opposite, he stopped concentrating and the voices became understandable. The images also slowed so that each one could be clearly seen.

Most were of horrible battles and endless bloodshed. He began to recognize that this was indeed his army. They were fighting valiantly against vicious creatures conjured by the two evil beings. He saw a few of Daagog and Ganondorf. A few images of his family came up.

Then one came up that showed an image of a spectacular sight. It was the Temple if Time, only not the same one as Link knew. This one was much more magnificent, sculpted with much more skilled hands than any mortal's. It was made of some luminous white material that shone its own light. This made it so that there were no shadows or darkness anywhere within its walls. The structure itself was unimaginably huge. It actually seemed more like a small fortress than a temple. Link's vision then began to move towards the entrance.

He was abruptly woken by Jonah and Kirra who came barging through his bedroom door. "Link! Get up! The Hylian army is outside the castle waiting for you!" Jonah shouted as Kirra started tearing off Link's blankets in hopes of getting him up quicker. Soon enough Link was ready and then he headed to see what all the commotion was about.

Outside the castle stood the Hylian army in all its splendor. The morning sun reflecting off the gold-colored armor. Each warrior wore a short purple cape with the Hylian royal symbol proudly displayed on it. The sight was magnificent to behold. It was like a shiny golden sea, spread out and rippling in the wind. Spears and flags rose above the heads of the soldiers in random places. Each and every Hylian soldier present had a look of pride on his face. Proud to be able to wear such an armor as this.

"All hail Sir Link, king of Hyrule!" Shouted several voices in unison. The army roared and applauded its leader. High pitched whistles heard above the roar and people honored him as they might have, had a god descended to them. "Sir Link! In obedience to your decree and loyalty to this fine country we, the Hylian army, are yours to command!"

Link raised his hand to silence the crowd. It took several moments for the crowd to finally calm down. As soon as it was quiet enough for him to be heard he began. "Brave soldiers of Hyrule! I have summoned your presence this day because in this perilous time we need you! I, your king, charge you with this duty. To give your all and then more on the field of battle! Fight valiantly and with honor! Be courageous, even unto death! For land and lord, for country and king. Fight for those who cannot defend themselves, and who need your strength. Fight for your livelihood, but most of all, FIGHT FOR THE FATE OF THE WORLD, for it truly rests on your strong shoulders!" Link shouted in an empowering voice.

The army responded with a deafening shout of confidence and anticipation. Every soldier there feeling confident and eager to fulfill their king's request. To fight an evil they knew nothing about, only that it threatened their homes. A fierce sense of patriotism could be felt thick in the air.

"Inspiring speech you worm." Daagog spat as he watched Link through his smoldering cauldron. He was now seated on an oversized black obsidian throne. His wings slightly open to his sides. His devious white eyes lifted to a Draken on the far side. "What news from Hyrule?"" He asked.

"None good sire." The gorilla-like creature growled. "Their army has grown to almost unstoppable propor..." Suddenly the creature cried out in pain as every rib in his body broke and tore apart all his innards.

"Well that's not good news at all now is it." Daagog said as he put his magic to rest. I hope that pathetic whelp Ganon is doing his share." Daagog said as he rose and walked out of his throne room. His large tri-clawed feet leaving deep scratches in the brick floor. He emerged into the outside world. The day was unusually dark, considering they were in the Sacred Realm. Dark storm clouds loomed ominously overhead. A sure sign that evil was amiss in this place.

The ground was his focus however. Before him was an immense army, consisting of every vile creature thinkable. Among the horde were his own Draken and Berserkers. Ganondorf had also called forth Moblins, Stalfos, Lizalfos, and even some Re-dead. The numbers rivaled that of Link's own army. It stretched out across the Sacred Planes, between Ganondorf's tower in the desert and his own dark palace which hovered over the Sacred Woods.

The time was drawing steadily nearer; the time when the Sacred Temple of Time would finally be revealed. Within it's walls lied the object of Daagog's obsession. He could sense the Mask of Supreme Being since he first entered this highly magical realm. "After nearly ten millennia, the time has nearly come. Time for your secret to be revealed! Soon Apollyon will be set loose once again!" Daagog shouted into the sky. He spoke to Supreme Being, who he knew would be watching these events transpire. "Soon I shall possess the mask, and with it, all of the power you possess."

_Even if that fool Ganon does posses my own god-powers. No matter, he'll be nothing more than a nuisance soon._ The dark god thought to himself. _In precisely three months in Hylian days the Temple will appear. At that time I can claim the Mask and become Apollyon, angel of the Abyss, once again. With the Mask, my Triforce, and the Sword of Bog'Thuule, I will reign supreme over the universe. Then I'll destroy it piece by wretched piece!_

_Oh that fool Daagog. If he only knew what is going to happen in a short time._ Ganondorf thought ignorantly. His insane eyes turned to his seven prisoners. " In exactly three months from today, I will control this planet and every pathetic being that crawls on it as well." He received hateful stares from all but one of his prisoners. "Oh, come now Zelda, surely you've not given up hope already." He teased. "Its only been a month since Link abandoned you."

"Never!" She screamed. "You twisted son of a b…" she started to say, before her mouth was forced shut by Ganondorf's magic.

"Your highness, one so noble shouldn't be using such language. Especially in the presence of another dignitary." Ganondorf said, referring to himself. Zelda just looked down again. She had become accustomed to Ganondorf's constant taunting. It sickened her, but she had learned that resistance was met with more torture. The other six sages around her looked pitifully at their defeated queen.

"Don't listen to him Zelda." Saria said, trying to bring her out of her depression. "I was Link's only friend while he lived in the forest. I know for a fact that he would never abandon his destiny. Especially when his own family is at stake."

She was answered by a vicious backhanded slap by Ganondorf. "Control your tongue, pest!" Ganondorf roared.

"Leave us be!" Pleaded Ruto, who was trapped in a tank, so she wouldn't slip out of the shackles. Ganondorf eyed her evilly, but he was becoming bored with this torture, for now. So he did leave, stationing two large Moblins to guard the door.

"Ey, don't look too down." Darunia said in a deep raspy voice. He was chained with two strong chains on each arm, two more on each leg, and even one around his neck. "Sister Saria is right. Link will be here soon. Then he'll set us free and we can defeat that madman soon enough."

"Indeed," said Rauru, who despite his ability to traverse both realms was still somehow confined to shackles. "I sense a great light in this seemingly eternal darkness."

Ganondorf had just emerged from the dungeon when he turned to the dark presence that had just flown in. "Ah, Daagog, what a pleasant surprise." Ganondorf said in mock kindness.

"Shut your face fool." Daagog said harshly. "I don't intend on staying. Just to tell you that Link has amassed even more soldiers to his army. He will arrive soon."

"And just how do you know he'll attack soon. He's showed no sign of aggression yet." Ganondorf said confidently. "The fool's scared of what I've become."

"Are you forgetting this." Daagog said as he replayed Link's encounter with Dark Link. "He very much showed aggression there. He even promised to do worse to you."

"The little whelp does not concern me." Ganondorf said angrily.

"You arrogant fool, do not underestimate him. He may not contain the power we possess, but he is a very real threat none the less." Ganondorf simply grunted. "Do what you will, it won't matter soon." Daagog finished as he flapped his powerful wings and ascended into the air, flying off to his palace.

"Indeed it won't, you stupid fool." Ganondorf said under his breath. His plan was simple, use the army as a distraction, to avert Link's attention from more important matters. Soon a power greater than the Triforce would be his. Little did he know that that was Daagog's plan as well.


	21. Berserker's Recap

**CHAPTER XVI**

**BERSERKERS RECAP**

Hey hey, what's up all my peeps in ficland. I'm back and ready to bring this story to a close. I just needed some inspiriation, and it would have come sooner had someone actually reviewed. I know there were more than 3 people who read it, I just wonder why they couldn't take a second to leave a few words? Ok, how about this. I will read and review every story by anyone who will review any one of mine.

OK, I know that the first part of the story throws a lot at you, and I apologize, I didn't really have the whole idea in mind until chapter 6.So to make up for all that I decided that this chapter is going to be just a quick recap of all the power items and things that might have gotten all confused. I realized that I have a lot of different items and characters.

The Items are as follows:

**Triforce of the Goddesses**- The traditional Triforce of all Zelda games. Ling has Courage, Jonah now has Power, because Ganondorf lost it when coming into contact with a Dark Triforce. Wisdom is still held by Zelda.

**Dark Triforce**- This is a four piece inverted Triforce made by Daagog to preserve some of his powers that were taken when he was attacked by the good goddesses. He currently possesses three of the four pieces due to his possession of Thanatos, the other is held by the traitorous Ganondorf.

**Sword of Bog'thul**- a divine sword crafted by the god of war, Bog'thul, himself. Bestows almost unlimited strength and magical powers to the wielder. Currently in the possession of Daagog.

**Mask of Supreme Being**- A mask crafted by the father of all the gods. Told to be able to bestow Supreme Being's powers to the wearer. Currently hidden away.

**Diamond Blade- Note: I will be calling this the White Sword from now on. **A magical sword crafted by ancient Gerudo sorceresses. Transformed Link when he came into contact with it. Now infused with Tolrec's flame it matches the power of Daagog's divine sword.

**Volcania**- A sword crafted by the Goron out of lava. Blessed with Tolrec's flame, it is in Jonah's possession.

**Wave Blades**- A specially crafted Gerudo weapon currently used by Kirra and Karina. They are formed to be held like an assassin's dagger, while the blade curves back along the forearm.

**War blades**- Large arced blades with a handle in the center. A Shade Elf invention currently wielded by Grundy. Tolrec's flames allowed them to rotate like a two bladed saw. )

Now for a look at the characters:

**Link- **The main protagonist of this tale. He is the king of Hyrule and Zelda's husband. He helped Jonah liberate Pandera in the first part of the story. He was transformed by the power of the White Sword and can now slightly perceive divine messages as well as being gifted with much more strength, agility, etc.

**Jonah**- An orphan who attended a military academy, but discovered his true destiny when he met Link. He was recently crowned King of Pandera, (his homeland) and is in love with Kirra.

**Kirra**- Sister to the current leader of the Gerudo. She is a skilled sorceress and is in love with Jonah. Her life changed when she met Link and Jonah and is now on a quest to save the world from doom.

**Grundy**- Captain of the military of the reclusive Shade Elf race. Reluctantly, at first, joined Link, Jonah, and Kirra, Pretty much a rip off of Illidan Stormrage from World Of Warcraft.

**Sages**- Basically high priests/esses of the Triforce, each in slight control of an element. **Zelda, **sage of Time, Link's wife. **Darunia, **leader of the Goron, sage of Fire. **Ruto**, princess of the Zora, sage of Water. **Saria**, Kokiri sage of Earth. **Impa**, Sheikah sage of Shadow. **Rauru**, spirit sage of Light. **Naburoo**, Gerudo sage of Spirit.

**Aaron & Lisa- **Link and Zelda's twin son and daughter. Kidnapped by Ganondorf.

**Tolrec**- The phoenix protector of the Dark Triforce of Dominion. Helped Link and his party by giving them his essence in their weapons. Named Link, Jonah, Kirra, and Grundy the Fellowship of Fire.

**Daagog**- The story's main antagonist. An evil god whose powers were weakened when he betrayed the other gods. He created his own Dark Triforce and has three of four pieces of it. He desires the Mask Of Supreme Being so he can become his true self once again. He is now in possession of the Sword of Bog'Thule as well.

**Ganondorf**- The same old blundering idiot that Link has defeated countless times before. This time he's got some real powers. Through betrayal he obtained Daagog's most powerful piece of the Dark Triforce, so he's super evil now.

**Thanatos**- (named because in Greek, it was the personification of death) A person who managed to learn the arts of reincarnation and has lived many lives, all of which he was a war lord. He was the original bearer of the Sword of Bog'Thule. He was possessed by the spirit of Daagog and lost total control until he allowed Link to escape certain death and was killed by Daagog.

**Thanagog**- The being that resulted when the evil god Daagog possessed Thanatos. Only appears for a short time, but is extremely powerful.

**Agahnim- **Jonah's primary antagonist until he was murdered by Thanatos. Being possessed by Daagog at first, he became the ruthless dictator of Pandera until his downfall.

**Cynan**- The cunning and ruthless general/warlord of the Panderian army under Agahnim's reign. Lost a major battle to Jonah's army of rebels, then was later killed in a one-on-one with Jonah.

Well, I hope this might have straitened anything out. If you're still confused feel free to either comment in a review or message me.


	22. Winds of Creation

CHAPTER XVII

**WINDS OF **CREATION

Jonah, Kirra, and Grundy were all in the training camp inspecting the incredible progress made. Every race and species of sentient beings in the world were all training together as one. Even the impossibly stubborn Gerudo began to mingle with the other soldiers. Now every soldier present was being trained by the best, and were all becoming incredibly strong warriors.

"Wait till Daagog gets a load of this. He'll wish he'd never been born!" Kirra said energetically as she clung onto Jonah's arm.

"Somehow I think he'll be expecting us. That is when the real fun will start." Jonah said in morbid humor.

Suddenly they heard Link calling out to them as he ran like mad towards them. "I know where it is!" He kept repeating. When he finally reached them he managed to calm enough to talk. "Last night, in a dream, vision, thing, I saw a magnificent temple and inside laid the object that will change the world forever."

"So do you know exactly where this temple is, maybe we can beat Daagog to it?" Grundy asked.

"Well, that's going to be the hard part. The temple is in the Sacred Realm." All eyes turned to him in surprise.

"So how are _we_ supposed to get to it!" Jonah shouted frustrated. "Oh no, and guess who's already over there right now."

Jonah was right. Daagog and Ganondorf were both taking refuge in the safety of the Sacred Realm. Now the enemies had the advantage.

"If the sages were here we could have them do it, but Ganondorf knew too well what he was doing. He must already know." Link said pessimistically.

"That means Daagog knows for sure." Kirra said a little worriedly.

"How is it that they're always one step ahead of us!" Grundy shouted, reverting to his more natural urges of screaming and rampaging.

"I don't know, lets just drop this for now, its totally bumming me out." Kirra said still grappling on to Jonah's arm, only with less enthusiasm now.

By now the four heroes had walked back to the castle and were just about to split to their separate quarters.

"Well, they do have a god on their side. Surely you haven't begun to underestimate." The all too familiar voice rung out into the echoes. The sound of that chilling voice caused Link and Jonah's spines to tingle and their senses to go on edge. There in the bright doorway stood a black silhouette, black shroud blowing in the wind.

Sure enough, as he walked over to the group, his distinct light gray eyes stared unwavering into Link's. "Nice to see you again hero." Thanatos said, giving him a big mock smile.

"Sorry I can't say the same for you." Link spat as he reached for the scabbard of his sword.

"There's no need for that, hero. I don't have the means to harm you, seeing as how that bastard demon took mine." His voice icy and ever so calm.

"Why shouldn't I take this opportunity to put an end to your meddling? Give me one good reason!" Shouted Link who still had his hand on the hilt of the White Sword. He glanced to his left and saw Jonah had his sword at the ready too.

"Well, its quite simple. You owe me." A familiar glint flashed across his eyes.

"What's this fool talking about?" Grundy said, quickly losing his patience with this smug new intruder.

"To put it plainly, I saved Link's life. So he owes me at least that much."

"Stand down," Link ordered reluctantly, "He's right. I'd have been defeated by Daagog in the desert if not for him." Everyone looked at him in a mixture of puzzlement and shock.

"Anyway, as shocking as it might seem to you fools, I really came here to offer my assistance to your little escapade." Thanatos said. Now all the eyes turned to him and Link and Jonah's jaws nearly dropped off their faces.

"What?! First you blow up my academy, then try and take the mask, and if that isn't enough, you almost killed us both! Now you want to help! I don't think so!" Jonah shouted in rage and attacked Thanatos.

Thanatos sidestepped the attack, then drove his knee into Jonah's stomach, causing him to fall, breathless for a moment. Kirra ran to his side, glaring daggers at Thanatos, then tenderly helping Jonah to his feet.

"Don't be a fool!" Thanatos yelled, momentarily losing his calm guise. "Who else knows more about what you are up against than I. I had the Sword of Bog' Thule for more lifetimes than you can imagine. I unwittingly served that demon for a good portion of my last one as well. Not to mention that I got a look at his mind while I was under his control. You may not want my help, but you damn sure need it."

All eyes turned to the floor, they knew he was right. No one knew exactly what they were up against in this one.

"First off, I have information about the Sacred Realm. It seems that Daagog and Ganondorf have put aside their differences for a moment and unfortunately for us, have forged an alliance. Their armies are amassing as we speak, hundreds of thousands of monsters and unspeakable evils are submitting themselves to the two.

I also have knowledge of your so called Sages." As soon as he said this Link once again began to slip away from sanity.

"Where are they?! Is Zelda there?! Tell me now!" Link shouted almost lunging at Thanatos. He was met with a punch in the nose.

"Shut up! I'm about to tell you!" He said, becoming increasingly annoyed at the groups impatience. "They are all alive and relatively unharmed. They are being held captive in Ganondorf's tower in the Sacred Desert Colossus. There are also two small children locked in the top of the tower."

"Aaron and Lisa are there too?" Link asked, despair clear in his voice.

"Yes, however, I know for a fact that even with your new sword you will not be able to defeat Daagog. Therefore I came here to teach you and train you. Only then will you be able to stand a remote chance of defeating Ganondorf, never mind even Daagog." Thanatos said all too calmly. "I shall return tomorrow for Link, if you truely desire to see your family again you'll come with me."

Suddenly there was a powerful gust of wind causing all in the room to shut their eyes; when they reopened them Thanatos was nowhere to be seen.

"Link, you can't seriously be thinking of taking his offer. It has to be a trick." Jonah protested, concern evident in his brown eyes.

"I don't have a choice, I have to see Zelda again. Even if it is a trap." Link said walking to his room.

The next day came around without further incident, and just as promised Thanatos was standing in the entrance to the main audience chamber. "I would have thought that the Hero of Hyrule would have been such a late riser." He said. "Never mind that now, we have only twenty nine Hylian days until the Temple of Time appears in the Sacred Realm. Hero, come now." He finished, walking out of the castle.

Link reluctantly followed Thanatos, not saying a single word. After leaving the town behind they came to a small crest overlooking a peaceful stream. Link thought for a second about what his life would have been like if fate hadn't chosen him to have such a heavy burden.

"Fate can sometimes seem unfair. Countless times I've wondered why so much importance would be placed on so few a mortals." Thanatos said, seeming lost in his own memories.

"How'd you know that that's what I was thinking about? Can you read my mind?" Link asked, beginning to have his doubts about this.

"No, but I can see it in your eyes, the desire to lead a normal life; to forget about the problems of the world and be an everyday person. The pain in your eyes is evidence enough to see that." For the first time Link saw a little sadness appear on Thantos' face.

"Enough talk though, I brought you here to train you." Thanatos then closed his eyes and extended his hand. From under his feet a dead branch sprung into his palm. He brought his other hand across the stick and as it passed over the stick changed form. The end result was a rather long sword. Thanatos could see the wonder in Link's eyes. "A little trick I picked up a few centuries back. I don't need the sword or even the triforce to be an undefeatable warrior."

Before Link had a chance to blink Thanaots thrust his sword through Link's right shoulder. Link cried in agony, but as Thanatos removed his blade, the wound healed. "I can't have you die here Link, so I shall heal you every time I hit you. Your goal is to thrust your sword through my torso, if you cannot kill me there is no chance for you when you encounter Daagog."

Link nodded and drew his White Sword. The flames within seemed to leap to life in anticipation. Link charged Thanatos and tried to skewer him. All Link managed to do was shred through Thanatos' cloak. Thanatos threw it away and leapt high into the air. Link backflipped to avoid getting cut down the middle. He didn't recover fast enough, however, and was sliced across his face, but just as before it healed as the blade left.

"Ah he's so fast." Link scoffed as he came up for a horizontal slice. The blow grazed Thanatos' shoulder but otherwise had no effect. Throughout the morning the two battled, Link taking most of the punishment. Finally, when the sun was beating down from its noon point Thanatos stopped.

"Enough. You cannot do it. We will have to start with something less intensive tomorrow. We are not done for today however." This drew a puzzled glance from Link. "There is more to defeating a god than brute force, as you should well know. You must learn to tap into the true power of the Triforce. Previously, the only use you put it to was to give yourself the courage to face Gannon. Now I will teach you the full potential of the Triforce of Courage."

"How can you possibly know what powers it has, or how to unlock and use them?" Link asked suspiciously. He was still trying to figure out why Thanatos would possibly help him in such a way, if indeed he was telling the truth.

"It's quite simple. In the life after death you learn so much. My final act of defiance agains the Dark God earned me pardon from the burning pits of Hell. I learned so much of the creation of the world. Every detail was vivid in my mind, and as a gift, the Goddesses allowed me to keep most of this knowledge to aid you." Thanatos said, as if talking to a god was an everyday thing.

"What! Have you suddenly gone insane? How could you have possibly talked to them, you were prepared to defeat them with Supreme Being's power."

"Ah, but they see Daagog as a much grander threat to them. Now once again I have waisted time talking about trivial matters when you have to be trained. Now, the first thing I need you to do is tell me everything you know about the Triforce of Courage."

"Well, I know it was created by Farore, goddess of Courage, and that it was merged with me after Ganon stole the Triforce of Power. I know that it allowed me to aproach Ganon and was an intregal part in imprisoning him. Other than that I thought it was some link to Zelda and Ganondorf and even Farore, though that has yet to happen to me." Link said, recalling every legend and experience he had with the ancient power.

"I admit you do know a great deal. I'm afraid you've missed the most important power of the Triforce. Farore is the master of Creation on this world and possesses the power of the Wind. Therefore the Triforce inherited those same traits. Think about the power of controling the Winds of Creation." Awe spreading over Thanatos' face as he thought of what could be done.

"What can that do?" Link asked, not seeing how this could possibly help. He was still sweating from his spar with Thanatos, beads of sweat clung his bangs to his forehead making him a little irritable.

"Think about it. Daagog possesses Triforce that only amount to destruction.The only power that could be enough to overcome it is creation. Also, think of how helpful it would be to be able to create anything out of thin air, or should I say Wind." Thanatos saw Link's face suddenly fill with wonder. "So, now I must train you to tap into that power. First off you must calm yourself to the point where you feel nothing but your own mind."

Link tried to, but everytime he closed his eyes memories, visions, and thoughts of Zelda intruded his mind. He tried to force them out, but concentrating on them only made them clearer. "No, look deep down into yourself. Find that barrier that holds back the power you sense within you."

Link tried again, this time looking not into his mind, but delving into his very soul. There, hidden deep within the recesses of his being he felt a swell of power. He pushed at it and it resisted, it felt like trying to push through rubber, the more he pushed the more it resisted. With a final burst of mental energy he broke the barrier.

Immediately his senses were overwhelmed.The feeling could only describe it as flying through the air. Wind streaking past him at such speed he felt as if he couldn't breath. It was exhilirating, he began to 'see' that there was no ground beneath him and a bright rising sun ahead of him. Link felt like he could possibly lose himself to this sensation and drift away from his body and everything real. Time seemed to not exist in this imaginary place, whether he had been there seconds or days he could not tell. Suddenly he felt himself being pulled back into the darkness of his own mind. He felt himself pass through that almost impregnible barrier and slowly regained conciousness.

When he was well enough to open his eyes Link realized that he wasn't in Hyrule Fields anymore, but back in the castle. "Wh-- What happened? How did I wind up here?" His throat was parched as if he'd not had a drink in ages. He looked to his right and saw Jonah sleeping uncomfotably upright in a chair. "Hey!"

"Wha!" Jonah awoke with a start. "Oh, you're awake. We thought you would have been out for a bit longer." Jonah said, still stretching his cramped back.

"Why? How'd this happen in the first place?" Link asked.

"Well, about an hour ago Thanatos brought you back here unconcious. He said you wore yourself out training, that you lost yourself in your studies." Jonah repeated.

Link chuckled at his choice of words then tried to get up. The second he did his head was assailed by vertigo so strong that he was forced back into the bed.When he was finally able to come to his senses he could feel a new power coursing through his veins. It felt as if a part of him that he didn't even realize was there had finally been awakened. Link felt whole and complete.

Then Thanatos stormed impatiently into the room. "Good, you're up. Let's go." He said, turning to leave before even finishing his statement. Kirra was walking by and overheard his order.

"Are you kidding, Link just woke up. He should get at least the rest of the day to recover." She said, casting a worried glance in Link's direction.

"No, I am completely serious.We only have a month before Link must confront a God. Do you think he can afford to waist even a few hours?"

Kirra was about to object when Link interupted. "It's okay Kirra. I'll be fine." He said smiling to reaffirm her. He headed out behind Thanatos until they came to that same spot that they had dueled before.

"Let us begin again." Thanatos said. And so they began, Link learning how to manifulate the air around him and create tiny pebbles and the like. All the while Thanatos impatiently urging him on, seeming to know too much. The days went by all too fast. before they knew it two weeks had gone by.

During their duels Link had learned tecniques and moves that he would have thought almost impossible earlier. His manipulation of the wind grew as well. He could now keep a low level hurricane in motion for more than an hour. He also learned how to use air as a weapon as well. For instance freezing the temperature in it until all the moisture froze into thousands of ice shards, or vice versa and making the air blistering hot. The art of creation gave Link the most trouble, because you had to be pure of thought while performing it and at the present Link's thoughts hadbeen anything but. He still had enough practice to form many different solids. Metal gave him the worst time because tit took so much concentration to make something so solid.

The day finally came where he had enough skill to plunge the White Sword into Thanatos' chest. It had been a greviously long duel. Link would have been fatally wounded several times if not for Thanatos' healing, but he had done it none the less. That earned him a single day off from his training.

That moment seemed a turning point in Link's training, because afterthat day it seemed he would defeat Thanatos with less and less injury to himself. His skill with the Triforce magic increased as well. Once he was to condense the moisture in the Desert air enough to fill up a dried up lake that used to provide water to hundreds of Gerudo. After some time the drops began to form until the air in the area was completley dry. Other times he was to use his creation powers to create objects in order to block incoming projectiles.

Less than a week before the time when the Sacred Temple of Time was supposed to appear, Link finally defeated Thanatos with only a slash in the ribs sustained to himself. It was then that Thanatos finally relented on his training.

"Very well done." Thanatos said after he healed, "There is nothing more for me to teach you. Now you posses the skill and power to defeat Ganondorf and save your family, even if he uses the full power of his stolen Triforce."


	23. The Time Has Come

**CHAPTER XVIII**

**THE TIME HAS COME**

_The fool, he thinks that by merely possessing the Dark Triforce of Dominion that he is all powerful. He even has his minions stop to worship him every day. It is a disgusting sight to have to see, even in my eyes._ Daagog had had it with Ganondorf's constant gloating. If only the conceited warlock knew that Daagog could crush him like a gnat.

The reason that he was being so annoyed is because the said warlock was staring him in the face at this very moment. "What in the Dark World makes you think that one of _your_ Drakens should be the commander in this assault? My Iron Knuckles are much better equipped for the job!" Ganondorf yelled in frustration, his eyes burning with insane rage.

"Quite simple." As Daagog spoke he raised his hand and one of the two Iron Knuckles that had accompanied their master suddenly howled in agony. With a sickening pop the creatures body exploded from within its armor, blood seeping out of all the creases in its shiny armor. "They are not resistant to magic."

Ganondorf roared and stormed off in the opposite direction. "Have it your way then! We shall see who was right when the Hylians come for you!"

_Ha, like that pathetic cur Link is going to come after me first. You have the thing most sacred to him. He will destroy you first, that is a gaurantee._

* * *

Link awoke that morning feeling as if fate had turned everything in the world against him. He longed with all his heart to kiss his beloved wife's soft lips again, he longed to see the smiling faces of his children, he longed for the day when the world would be rid of this impending apocalypse. 

Almost instictively he pushed through the barrier that held the power of the triforce, for it was now the only place to find refuge from the suffering and pain his soul felt. Someone walked into the room behind him.

"Link, now do you understand why people have gone through such lengths to get the Triforce? The pure power and ecstacy that you and you alone command. That is also its greatest temptation. You must learn to resist the need to use it, or you will slowly turn into someone like Ganondorf, a hungry ravenous monster just waiting to find his next fix of power." Thanatos said in a tone that sounded like concern.

"It's just that it seems like everything is against us. I don't even know how or where to begin to make myself get over it." Link said, almost to the point of tears.

"Then don't get over it. Just turn that rage and saddness against the one that hurt you, get revenge and let him be the one to fear what is coming for him!" Thanatos said, allowing a little taint to slip in to Link while he was this vulnerable.

"Link!" A voice suddenly shouted. He turned to see Jonah headed towards the two. "You had better take a look at this." Jonah said worriedly. Link could tell by the look in his friend's eyes that something serious was happening.

A piece of paper was shoved into his face and Jonah frantically began to explain. "Link, the local astrologers have predicted that in a week there will be a total eclipse of the sun! That is the same time that the Temple of Time is going to appear in the Sacred Realm, right?" The only response was a worried nod from Link.

"So it has begun." Grundy said ominously, he was leaning against the doorway and must have overheard the last conversation. "Link, I think it would be best to put your sadness aside now and start being the king that the people need you to be. You alone are the one who is going to have to face the evils, but your people must believe that it is them who will make the greatest difference."

"No, I will not decieve the people. We have all been training like crazy and I say that it _is_ them who will make all the difference. Every man and creature out there right how is prepared to give the ultimate sacrafice for those that they hold dear. So you see, I do need them, every one of them." All in the room were silent for a long moment after, realizing that what Link had just said was completely true.

"One last thing we need to do." Link said. This drew a confused look from Jonah. "I need to teach Jonah how to control the true power of the Triforce within him." To tell the truth, up until that moment, Link had completely forgotten that Jonah had been granted one of the most precious and powerful gifts in the world.

Jonah's face shone with excitement. "Yes! Finally some action!" He caught something out of the corner of his eyes. As Link said that, he noticed that Thanatos tensed up, only for a second, but it was enough to prove Jonah's suspicions. Thanatos was using and manipulating Link. Normally he knew Link would have seen right through it, but he had been blinded due to his longing for his wife and children. _Than snake! Thanatos, I swear to you, if you cause Link to die in this fight I will bring all the powers in heaven, on earth, and in hell to destroy you._

Link then lead Jonah to the same spot where he had been training with Thanatos and began the exact same way. "Now Jonah, you must completely free your mind of any thought and focus on finding this little barrier in your mind that only you can break through." Jonah tried as he was instructed and for a few moments he was silent. He suddenly grunted in frustration as he started complaining to Link.

"This isn't working at all! I feel that barrier but no matter how hard I push, I can't get through." Jonah said exhasperated. Link considered this a moment before speaking.

"Just imagine being the only one able to save Kirra and that breaking through that barrier is the _only_ way." Link knew that this would be all that Jonah needed to hear. So with a look of pure determination Jonah tried once again. This time his face changed to a look of shock, but his eyes remained closed. Link knew that he had touched the power, he also knew that if he did not get Jonah back to conciousness he would get lost as he himself almost did.

"Jonah!" Link yelled as he shook his friend by the shoulders. Jonah opened his eyes with a start and started panting heavily.

"Incredible! That was the most amazing thing I've ever felt!" Jonah shouted enthusiastically. Link only smiled and nodded, knowing full well what he meant.

"Now, Thanatos told me that your Triforce's full power is that of strength and fire. I am going to try and teach you how to tap into that power while in a combat situation." So Link began to repeat the lessons that Thanatos had taught him. Jonah was an incredibly fast learner and the most dedicated person Link had ever come across. In his first day he had already learned to manipulate the flame on a torch into simple shapes and was able to crack a rather large tree trunk with a single punch.

Five more days of rigerous training passed and both Link and Jonah, due to their competetive nature, both became quite skilled in their control of their powers. Link could now create solid matter out of nothing as well as manipulate the air around him to do anything from creating a tornado, to becoming so hot or cold that it would be fatal to anything within range. Jonah could now create fire at his whim and punch enormous craters into solid rock cliffs.

Kirra and Grundy were not left out of the action either. Seeing as both of them dual wielded foreign weapons they found that sparring with eachother, as well as involking the power of Tolrec's flame into their weapons, had increased their strength tenfold as well.

As the fifth day of the last week drew to a close an ominous feeling of fear and anxiousness settled on everyone in Hyrule. As the now extremely experienced troops headed to their barracks for the night Link and the others headed to the castle, all exhausted beyond belief. All agreed that these final two days would be used to rest and regather their strength and vigor as much as possible.

To their suprise, well all but Link's, Terry had once again appeared, seemingly from nowhere, in the main hall. "Heroes! Greetings, I have come to offer what assistance I can to this conflict." He was now adorned in spectacular war gear. He had gleaming silver armor on his chest, legs, and shoulders, all had inscriptions in some other-worldly language. Strapped to his left side was a long sheath, at least seven feet in length, which held a spectacular blade made of some metal that seemed to be semi-transparent. His helmet had two angelic looking metal wings pointing back while a single silver horn protruded strait forward. And cascading down his back was a brilliantly white cape.

"In two days the apocalypse will begin and an evil like no other will be unleased. Are you all prepared?" Terry asked.

"Yes, we are all ready." Jonah answered. "There is only one problem. We don't know how to open the way to the Sacred Realm." Everyone in the group nodded in agreement because that was the one thing that no one could figure out.

"Don't worry, at the time of the eclipse the two dimensions will actually converge and become a single one. To you it will seem that the evil forces will simply appear from nowhere and it will be the same for them."

"How do you know all this?" Kirra asked, finally realizing that Terry knew too much or wasn't telling them enough.

"I suppose it is no use hiding it any longer. I am the son of Supreme Being, and have been sent by my father to help you mortals bring balance back to the Triforce as well as the world." Everyone looked at him suspiciously except Link who knew that he spoke the truth.

"You expect us to just believe that?" Grundy said suspiciously. "We no nothing of you except what Jonah has told us. Besides, if you are the son of the most powerful god, then surely there is no need for this confllict at all."

"It is the truth that I speak and you are correct to suggest that. However, in this mortal shell I only hold a minute fraction of my powers, but it was the only way that I could come to this world at all." Terry explained.

So now the plan was set. At the time of the eclipse Link's army would begin charging at the spot where Daagog and Ganon's troops would be, thus gaining the element of suprise. All they had to do now was wait. The thing they had forgotten about was that Thanatos had not been seen since the day Jonah began his training.


End file.
